LOOKING FOR FOOD IN SYRIA
Being hungry and displaced in Syria
By Atique Naqvi | Dubai, UAE | Uploaded on the blog recently**
Hunger as a result of breaking down of food supply chains is not uncommon in conflict-hit areas – Syria is just one example.
Though millions of Syrians are currently experiencing ills of war, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has made significant progress over the last few weeks in reaching more people affected by the violence. Owing to improved access through cross-line and cross-border food deliveries, thousands of Syrians in besieged and difficult-to-reach areas are benefitting from the program.
In July, WFP food assistance reached a total of 3.7 million people in Syria, an increase on the number of people reached in June (3.4 million).
More than 300,000 people in besieged and hard-to-reach areas received WFP food through cross-line convoys in July – double the number of people reached using cross-line convoys in June.
Security challenges continue to hinder WFP’s ability to deliver food, however, and the organization remained over half a million short of its goal of reaching 4.25 million people.
The WFP supplies reached 10,000 civilians trapped in rural areas of Dar’a through cross-line deliveries. The majority had not been assisted since the beginning of the crisis.
In July, WFP made a breakthrough crossing frontlines to reach 30,000 civilians in Moadamiyeh in rural Damascus for the first time in two years, bringing food rations containing rice, lentils, oil, pasta, bulgur, canned foods, flour, beans, salt and sugar. Until then, in spite of efforts to negotiate access, all humanitarian deliveries to Moadamiyeh had been blocked since October 2012. WFP staff delivering the food reported dire conditions of people severely affected by prolonged hunger.
Also in July, WFP trucks entered Deir-ez-Zor governorate, delivering food assistance for over 76,000 people in both urban and rural areas, thanks to extensive access negotiations and advocacy by WFP and its partners. The governorate was last reached by WFP in May before fighting cut all access routes.
Some 250,000 civilians have fled from eastern Deir-ez-Zor into neighbouring governorates in the northeast, including Al-Hassakeh.
WFP has begun providing food vouchers to pregnant women and nursing mothers in Homs and Latakia. Using WFP vouchers, 730 mothers can now purchase fresh food, including eggs, dairy, fruits and vegetables, providing improved nutritional intake for themselves and their babies, says statement from WFP shared with TRENDS.
WFP needs to raise $35 million every week to meet the food needs of families affected by the conflict in Syria and refugees currently residing in neighboring countries such as Jordan and Lebanon.
** Originally published in TRENDS magazine/website. www.trendsmena.com
By Atique Naqvi | Dubai, UAE | Uploaded on the blog recently**
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| Syrians protest against lack of basic services. |
Hunger as a result of breaking down of food supply chains is not uncommon in conflict-hit areas – Syria is just one example.
Though millions of Syrians are currently experiencing ills of war, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has made significant progress over the last few weeks in reaching more people affected by the violence. Owing to improved access through cross-line and cross-border food deliveries, thousands of Syrians in besieged and difficult-to-reach areas are benefitting from the program.
In July, WFP food assistance reached a total of 3.7 million people in Syria, an increase on the number of people reached in June (3.4 million).
More than 300,000 people in besieged and hard-to-reach areas received WFP food through cross-line convoys in July – double the number of people reached using cross-line convoys in June.
Security challenges continue to hinder WFP’s ability to deliver food, however, and the organization remained over half a million short of its goal of reaching 4.25 million people.
The WFP supplies reached 10,000 civilians trapped in rural areas of Dar’a through cross-line deliveries. The majority had not been assisted since the beginning of the crisis.
In July, WFP made a breakthrough crossing frontlines to reach 30,000 civilians in Moadamiyeh in rural Damascus for the first time in two years, bringing food rations containing rice, lentils, oil, pasta, bulgur, canned foods, flour, beans, salt and sugar. Until then, in spite of efforts to negotiate access, all humanitarian deliveries to Moadamiyeh had been blocked since October 2012. WFP staff delivering the food reported dire conditions of people severely affected by prolonged hunger.
Also in July, WFP trucks entered Deir-ez-Zor governorate, delivering food assistance for over 76,000 people in both urban and rural areas, thanks to extensive access negotiations and advocacy by WFP and its partners. The governorate was last reached by WFP in May before fighting cut all access routes.
Some 250,000 civilians have fled from eastern Deir-ez-Zor into neighbouring governorates in the northeast, including Al-Hassakeh.
WFP has begun providing food vouchers to pregnant women and nursing mothers in Homs and Latakia. Using WFP vouchers, 730 mothers can now purchase fresh food, including eggs, dairy, fruits and vegetables, providing improved nutritional intake for themselves and their babies, says statement from WFP shared with TRENDS.
WFP needs to raise $35 million every week to meet the food needs of families affected by the conflict in Syria and refugees currently residing in neighboring countries such as Jordan and Lebanon.
** Originally published in TRENDS magazine/website. www.trendsmena.com
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