WFP forced to cut food aid to hungry poor in Armenia
Feb. 8 2006
Harold Doan and Associates Ltd.
Press Release - World Food Programme Yerevan -
As bitterly cold weather keeps its grip on the Caucasus region, WFP has warned that due to a lack of funding, it has run out of most food commodities for the 110,000 people it assists in Armenia.
WFP urgently has called on donors for more than US$4 million to provide the neediest with food aid over the next six months.
Starting in early January, WFP has only been providing flour for 65,000 people, most of whom are rural primary school children and the elderly.
While some 45,000 people, including 5,000 kindergarten children, received no assistance whatsoever last month.
Barely coping “WFP’s food basket should be made up of flour, oil and pulses – these are the basic foods we need to survive," said Muzaffar Choudhery, WFP’s Country Director in Armenia.
"But since January a lack of resources has meant we haven’t been able to provide a full food basket for many of our beneficiaries.
[...]
With limited economic opportunities, thousands of people lack employment and thus access to food. Many live on only US$2 a day.
“WFP is helping the poorest of the poor in Armenia – those with no work and no money to buy food or cover other basic needs,” said Choudhery.
“One woman told me it’s minus six degrees in her home. People just don’t have money to heat their homes. Without adequate food, their lives are even tougher,” he said.
Rebuilding infrastructure Under the current difficult circumstances, WFP assistance is crucial.
The agency has introduced food-for-work activities to help rebuild infrastructure, food-for-training to help promote self-reliance and food-for-education in the rural areas to guarantee that children go to school regularly and get a nutritious meal when there.
For the next six months – the most vulnerable in terms of food security – WFP needs 6,000 tons of food (or more than US$4 million) to complete its two-year operation in Armenia, which started in June 2004, costing about US$11 million.
For individual donations go to here.
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
Harold Doan and Associates Ltd.
Press Release - World Food Programme Yerevan -
As bitterly cold weather keeps its grip on the Caucasus region, WFP has warned that due to a lack of funding, it has run out of most food commodities for the 110,000 people it assists in Armenia.
WFP urgently has called on donors for more than US$4 million to provide the neediest with food aid over the next six months.
Starting in early January, WFP has only been providing flour for 65,000 people, most of whom are rural primary school children and the elderly.
While some 45,000 people, including 5,000 kindergarten children, received no assistance whatsoever last month.
Barely coping “WFP’s food basket should be made up of flour, oil and pulses – these are the basic foods we need to survive," said Muzaffar Choudhery, WFP’s Country Director in Armenia.
"But since January a lack of resources has meant we haven’t been able to provide a full food basket for many of our beneficiaries.
[...]
With limited economic opportunities, thousands of people lack employment and thus access to food. Many live on only US$2 a day.
“WFP is helping the poorest of the poor in Armenia – those with no work and no money to buy food or cover other basic needs,” said Choudhery.
“One woman told me it’s minus six degrees in her home. People just don’t have money to heat their homes. Without adequate food, their lives are even tougher,” he said.
Rebuilding infrastructure Under the current difficult circumstances, WFP assistance is crucial.
The agency has introduced food-for-work activities to help rebuild infrastructure, food-for-training to help promote self-reliance and food-for-education in the rural areas to guarantee that children go to school regularly and get a nutritious meal when there.
For the next six months – the most vulnerable in terms of food security – WFP needs 6,000 tons of food (or more than US$4 million) to complete its two-year operation in Armenia, which started in June 2004, costing about US$11 million.
For individual donations go to here.
Note: Above are excerpts from the article. The full article appears here. Clarifications and comments by me are contained in {}. Deletions are marked by [...]. The bold emphasis is mine.
posted by Vahe Balabanian at 5:56 PM
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