By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA, Dec 7 (Reuters) - The International Committee of the Red Cross said on Thursday it was sharply cutting its budget for Sudan next year and halting food distribution in Darfur as more people are able to harvest their own crops despite the fighting. The humanitarian agency is currently feeding 300,000 people -- only around a tenth of those deemed in need -- in remote areas of Sudan's troubled western region, but this group is now considered largely self-sufficient in food, a spokesman said. The ICRC budget for Sudan will be cut to 73.1 million Swiss francs ($61.2 million), a 43 percent drop, as it shifts from large-scale food distribution in Darfur to activities such as seed distribution and other income-generating projects. But Sudan remains its largest single operation worldwide. "The reduction of the budget (for Sudan) is largely related to Darfur," ICRC spokesman Marco Jimenez said. "We won't be doing any more food distribution because our assessment shows us that people have been able to harvest much more than previously, inspite of the violence. They have managed to attain a certain level of self-sufficiency in food," he added. Experts say around 200,000 people have been killed in Darfur since rebel groups took up arms in 2003 against the Khartoum government, charging it with neglect. The ICRC has concentrated on providing aid to remote communities of Darfur, while the United Nations is feeding another 2.9 million people, mainly living in camps for internally displaced people after fleeing violence. The ICRC on Thursday said it was seeking 1 billion Swiss francs ($836.8 million) to fund its 2007 programmes in hotspots including Sudan, the Palestinian territories and Iraq. National governments have provided some 80 percent of funding, with the United States, Britain and Switzerland the main donors. More than 40 percent of the ICRC's operational budget for 2007 was earmarked for Africa, with Sudan the largest aid programme for a fourth straight year. The ICRC is also reducing its operations in southern Sudan, following the 2005 peace agreement, and will shift its focus to non-emergency programmes during the transition, Jimenez said. The humanitarian agency, which deploys frontline aid workers in 80 countries, said it aimed to intensify discussions "with all parties of conflicts" to remind them of their legal obligations to distinguish between civilians and combatants. The neutral Swiss-based agency visits prisoners of war and other detainees to probe their treatment, provides emergency aid after disasters, and monitors compliance with international humanitarian law, including the 1949 Geneva Conventions. (Additional reporting by Laura MacInnis)
