The UN on Tuesday announced that the first shipment of Russian fertilizer left the Netherlands for the African country of Malawi.

The shipment of 20,000 metric tons of fertilizer loaded on a World Food Program-chartered vessel will go through Mozambique, according to spokesman Stephane Dujarric.

- It will be the first of a series of shipments of fertilizer destined for a number of other countries on the African continent in the coming months - said Dujarric.

The spokesman also said the UN welcomed the donation of 260,000 metric tons of fertilizer from Russian fertilizer producers stored in the European ports and warehouses.

The donation, he said, will serve to alleviate humanitarian needs and prevent catastrophic crop loss in Africa.

On July 22, Türkiye, the UN, Russia, and Ukraine signed an agreement in Istanbul to resume grain exports from three Ukrainian Black Sea ports, which had been paused in February due to Russia’s war on Ukraine. Except for a brief hiatus, it has enabled food shipments to the world ever since.

- Reconnecting fertilizer markets is a critical step to ensure global food security for 2023 and the United Nations will continue to make every effort, with all parties, to achieve this goal - Dujarric added.