It’s a long way from the ancient city centre of Rome, Italy to Nayapara refugee camp on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border.

But, thanks to the award-winning online vocabulary game FreeRice, Bangladesh, Myanmar and many other poverty-stricken countries, are just a click away for pupils of Rome’s “Ambrit” international school, who want to help feed the world’s 854 million hungry people.

Each time a FreeRice player clicks on a correct word definition, 20 grains of rice are donated to the World Food Programme to combat world hunger. That might not sound like much but with millions of other people playing the game around the world, the overall total amounts to hundreds of metric tons of rice.

First to benefit

Since its Oct 7 launch in 2007, an average 500,000 people have been clicking on the game daily, accumulating enough rice to feed some 700,000 people for one day, including 27,000 refugees from Myanmar, primarily members of an Islamic ethnic minority known as “Rohingyas” sheltering in Bangladesh.

WFP’s efforts to feed the refugees at two camps near Cox’s Bazar in south east Bangladesh is among the first operation to receive food rations thanks to FreeRice.

Uganda, Cambodia and Nicaragua will be the next to benefit; in each location, WFP is using FreeRice donations to purchase its rice rations from small-scale, local farmers – a big boost for the local economy.

Forgotten Population

“It’s just an amazing concept that someone thousands of miles away can be at their computer at home in America or Europe. A click of their mouse means that rice ends up here on the ground in Bangladesh,” says Lindy Hogan, a WFP programme officer working at Kutupalong and Nayapara refugee camps.

The “Rohingyas” refugees now receiving FreeRice fled religious and ethnic persecution in Burma’s North Rakhine State 16 years ago. Many have returned; the rest prefer to put up with the cramped living conditions of a refugee camp rather than go back.

Housing is basic: a bamboo shed houses each family. Poor sanitation takes an inevitable toll on mother and child health, with worms, diarrhoea and skin diseases common. Everyone is dependent on WFP food assistance.

“Thanks to FreeRice, these people, who are pretty much a forgotten population, can eat today and have breakfast, lunch and dinner,” adds Hogan.

Brains

John Breen, an American computer programmer from Bloomington, Indiana, created FreeRice as an incentive for his two sons, aged 13 and 15 years, to learn vocabulary at high school.

However, Breen’s long-term interest in reducing global poverty and hunger meant the site was destined for a far bigger audience. On the day of its October 7 launch FreeRice raised 850 grains – equivalent to 10 players. Three days later, 1,000 people were playing the game; within a month, that figure had risen to hundreds of millions.

“Given the chance, everyone I know from all walks of life, old and young, would like to see world hunger ended. I think FreeRice’s success proves it,” says Breen.

The click to donate concept is as simple as it is ingenious: big-name sponsors pay for web banners that appear at random on FreeRice vocab tests. Their ad dollars are then donated to WFP. In less than three months, Breen has already sent cheques worth US$213,000 to WFP’s headquarters in Rome, Italy.

The game’s rich vocabulary of over 10,000 words has attracted players from around the world, from students learning English as a second language to pupils studying at primary and secondary schools.

“One of the nice things about FreeRice is that people in their home or their school can actually do something about world hunger. They can give a little bit of rice or a lot depending on how much time they have,” says Breen.

Viral sensation

The site is an international, viral sensation with over 100 communities on Facebook playing the game and people posting their thoughts about hunger on YouTube. It’s phenomenal success won Internet recognition on January 7 when FreeRice won the best new website prize in the charity category of Yahoo! UK & Ireland’s “finds of the Year” Awards.

As a “Rohingyas” refugee mother sifts the rice that she will put on the dinner table for her family in their tumbledown house in Nayapara camp, she could be forgiven for not worrying about the origins of her next meal.

But, thanks to FreeRice, millions of people from Thailand and Germany to India and the United States do care – and, with a click of a mouse, they can do something about it.

Dhaka, Jan 8 (bdnews24.com) – In a dramatic turn of events, law adviser Mainul Hosein, health adviser ASM Matiur Rahman, power and food adviser Tapan Chowdhury and industry adviser Geeteara Safiya Choudhury resigned Tuesday.

The resignations came three days before the anniversary of the changeover by the military-backed government.

The chief adviser’s press secretary Syed Fahim Munaim told bdnews24.com that the advisers cited “personal reasons” for their resignations.

He said the swearing-in ceremony for new advisers would take place Wednesday.

Munaim did not name the new advisers, who are meant to fill vacancies on the technocratic government.

Officials said the Cabinet Division started preparations for the swearing-in ceremony for the new advisers.

Geeteara told bdnews24.com that she submitted her resignation letter to the Cabinet Division around 2pm Tuesday.

The resignation of Mainul was confirmed by his wife Saju Hosein.

Mohammad Iqbal Hossain, public relations officer for the power ministry, confirmed the resignation of Tapan.

At 5pm, health adviser ASM Matiur Rahman confirmed the news of his resignation.

“I worked for the nation and am still working. I will work in future as well. I will keep working when and where I get a chance to do so.”

“In the past, I was in a different place. At present, it is another place. And I will work in future from where I will be assigned to.”

Asked to explain why it happened, Matiur said: “No power is permanent.”

Earlier at 4pm, Matiur said he did not resign, after he was asked by reporters to comment on media reports on his “resignation".

Later he told bdnews24.com: “What you have heard is true.”

In instant reaction, the Awami League said an immediate power transfer to an elected government would solve the “problem".

Acting AL chief Zillur Rahman said, “The “problems” won’t be solved through the resignations of advisers. An election is the only tool to resolve the “problems".”

Cultural affairs adviser Ayub Quadri was the first to resign his post on the Fakhruddin administration in Dec 26, taking the responsibility for the loss of rare artefacts from Zia International Airport.

The resignation was on “personal grounds", the adviser initially told bdnews24.com by phone. Later, he said: “I made hints of resignation when I talked to reporters the other day.”

Mainul has often been accused by the media and the public of making outrageous and inconsistent comments on sensitive political topics.

His remarks came at a time when the caretaker administration says it is committed to holding a free and fair election by year-end.

Mainul told a private television station Monday that the Fakhruddin Ahmed-led government would live up to its pledges that include curbing corruption and delivering a flawless democracy through a credible election.

He also said that some vested groups were trying to push the government into trouble, but did not elaborate.

Tapan also drew flak for his recent comment that the government has nothing to do with runaway food prices despite the prices have doubled since the emergency administration took charge in Jan 2007.

Geeteara in Nov last year termed the fertilser crisis that prompted nationwide protests a ‘myth’ created by the media and the farmers unwilling to queue up.

Whether the resignation of the four advisers stemmed from policy or personal differences with colleagues was not immediately clear.

DHAKA, Jan. 6 (Xinhua) – After abnormal price-hike of rice last week that triggered panic among the low and middle-income people in Bangladesh, the price started sliding down on Sunday after the military-backed government intervention.

With continuous flow of rice from neighboring India, wholesale price came down to 26.50 taka (about 0.39 U.S. dollar) per kg at southwestern Benapole land port Sunday from 32 taka on Friday. Around 450 tons of Indian rice have been imported.

Major Ali Reza Khan, commander of Benapole Port Monitoring Cell, is supervising round the clock quick delivery of rice from the port.

Rice traders said active supervision of the joint forces greatly contributed to the decline in price. They expressed hope that rice price will come down further.

Meanwhile, the incumbent caretaker government headed by Chief Advisor Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed Sunday decided to sell 45,000 tons of rice at 25 taka per kg throughout January through countrywide rationing.

Bangladesh is facing acute food deficit following the production loss caused by twice monsoon flooding and devastating cyclone “Sidr” last year that battered the country’s southern coastal region.

Besides, according to local media, illegal hoarding by millers and wholesalers also caused sharp rice price hike.

The government will deploy 1,990 dealers and paramilitary Bangladesh Rifles personnel to sell out the rice through Open Market Sale in January.

Also, food-grains will be supplied to another 570,000 families under Vulnerable Group Feeding (VGF) program over the next five months in various poverty-prone parts of the country.

Earlier, the government allocated VGF cards for 2.6 million families in the cyclone-hit region to get the rice free of cost.

A weekly meeting of the Council of Advisers with Chief Adviser Dr Fakhruddin Ahmed in the chair Sunday reaffirmed immediate import of one million tons of rice by government to cool down the market and build a comfortable stock of food.

In the last few days the government held meetings with officials of the World Food Program and envoys of India, Thailand and Vietnam to discuss the importation of the required quantum of rice.

The government is negotiating with India to import 500,000 tons of coarse variety of rice and 100,000 tons from Thailand.

About 350,000 tons of food-grains have already been imported while steps for importing the rest 650,000 tons have been facilitated, an official of the Food Ministry said.

The official said besides, the import of food-grains from abroad through private channels is continuing.

LONDON, Jan 4 (Reuters) - UK oil explorer Cairn Energy Plc (CNE.L: Quote, Profile, Research) said a well it sank in Bangladesh was to be plugged and abandoned after it failed to hit commercial gas reserves, confirming a Reuters report from Dec. 31 and hitting its shares.

Cairn shares traded down 1.5 percent at 2,903 pence at 0903 GMT.

Investors and the Bangladeshi government had high hopes for the $117 million project exploring the Magnama structure in the Bay of Bengal.

But earlier this week, Jalal Ahmed, chairman of the state-run Bangladesh Oil, Gas and Mineral Corporation, or Petrobangla, said Cairn had failed to discover commercially viable gas with the Mangama well.

His comments have weighed on Cairn shares in recent days.

Cairn said drilling was expected to commence soon on the nearby Hatia-1 prospect. (Reporting by Tom Bergin and Ana Nicolaci da Costa; Editing by David Cowell)

DHAKA, Jan. 3 (Xinhua) – The World Food Program (WFP) Thursday assured it will take immediate steps to assist Bangladesh in procuring 500,000 tons of rice as soon as possible as the country is facing food deficit and rice price has already increased abnormally.

Besides, WFP will dispatch some 30,000 tons of rice to Bangladesh, which will reach here in February to mitigate sufferings of the victims of cyclone Sidr.

Thailand has floated tender to export 100,000 tons of rice, private news agency UNB reported Thursday.

The assurances were made by representatives of the United Nations system and the Ambassador of Thailand during separate meetings with Bangladesh caretaker government Foreign Affairs Adviser Dr Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhgury.

After the meeting, acting Country Director of UNDP Monoj Basnyat told reporters that they reviewed the possibility of procurement of rice and how the UN system could be used to assist the country in procuring 500,000 tons of rice as soon as possible.

Bangladesh faces food deficit as Nov. 15 cyclone “Sidr” caused heavy damage to paddy in the country’s southern region.

DHAKA: Bangladesh’s Food and Disaster Management Ministry has issued two separate tenders to import 50,000 tonnes of non-basmati parboiled and 50,000 tonnes of white rice from Thailand to meet emergency needs, food officials said on Wednesday.

The tenders were floated after India’s decision to raise the minimum export price of rice to $500 from $425.

Both the tenders will close on Jan. 16, with validity up to Feb. 5, for shipment within 30 days of the date of signing the contract.

The tender price has to be quoted separately for the country’s Chittagong and Mongla ports, cost, insurance and freight including stevedoring on the sellers’ account, at the both ends of the shipment. Bangladesh requires 1.7 million tonnes of grains, either through imports or grants, by the end of June, in the wake of a cyclone, officials said.

Cyclone Sidr struck Bangladesh’s coastlines on Nov. 15 with winds of up to 250 kph (155 mph) and a five-metre sea surge, killing more than 3,200 people and causing huge damage to crops, homes and infrastructure.

DHAKA, Dec 31 (Reuters) - An exploration well drilled by British oil-and-gas firm Cairn Energy Plc in an offshore field in Bangladesh has failed to discover commercially viable gas, a senior government official said on Monday.
The firm started drilling the well in October in the Magnama structure in the Bay of Bengal some 60 kilometres (38 miles) south of Chittagong port as part of a $117 million project, the energy official said.
“Just today we received the disappointing news from Cairn officials,” Jalal Ahmed, chairman of the state-run Bangladesh Oil, Gas, and Mineral Corporation, or Petrobangla, said.
The firm will now move its drilling rig to the Hatiya structure, Jalal said.
Cairn declined to comment.
The firm operates Bangladesh’s only offshore gas field at Sangu in the Bay of Bengal, producing up to 80 million cubic feet of gas per day (mmcfd).
Cairn has been in Bangladesh for more than 10 years and, along with its joint venture partner, U.S. firm Halliburton Co., has invested nearly $790 million, officials said.
Bangladesh’s proven and recoverable gas reserves of 13.54 tcf are expected to be exhausted by 2011, officials said.
($1 =68.60 taka)
(Reporting by Serajul Islam Quadir; Editing by Neil Fullick) ((anis.ahmed.reuters.com@reuters.net; +880-2-8332062 ; Reuters Messaging: anis.ahmed.reuters.com@reuters.net))

CHITTAGONG, Bangladesh, Dec 31 (Reuters) - Swiss firm Glencore International made the best bid on Monday in a tender by Bangladesh Petroleum Corp. to export 110,000 barrels of open-specification naphtha for January lifting, officials said.

Glencore GLEN.UL quoted a discount of $1.65 a barrel to Singapore spot naphtha with its free-on-board (FO quote of $92.53 per barrel. The Singapore benchmark price was $94.18 per barrel on Dec. 28.

Apart from Glencore, Projector Asia and Vitol Asia also took part in the naptha tender.

The validity of the tender is until Jan. 7. The naptha is to be delivered from Jan. 14 to Jan. 16, from Chittagong.

(Reporting by Nazimuddin Shyamol; Writing by Ruma Paul, Editing by Peter Blackburn)