THE United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP) has expressed concern over possible funding shortfall that is threatening to disrupt critical food assistance programmes in Zimbabwe.
WFP and its partners have been working tirelessly to address food insecurity caused by the El Niño-induced drought, which has since been declared a state of national disaster.
In May this year, WFP and its partners provided aid to approximately 61 984 people in five urban domains through the urban cash transfer programme, which offers monthly cash transfer of US$13 per person to combat short-term food insecurity.
“This programme combats short-term food insecurity by providing a monthly cash transfer of US$13 per person via two financial service providers.
“To protect against inflation and preserve the value of the assistance, the programme allows for US dollar cash outs,” the UN agency said in a statement this week.
Additionally, the Urban Resilience Building Programme assisted 6 520 people in six urban domains with skills development and income generation.
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“Selected households receive starter kits and training from technical experts in business management, financial literacy, technical skills and marketing,” the report said.
WFP also contributed to government’s disaster risk planning and management processes for climate hazards, advocating for the development of policies and strategies to support anticipatory actions in Zimbabwe.
However, a funding shortfall of US$81,9 million over the next six months is posing a significant threat to the expansion of food assistance response to address the El Niño-induced drought effects.
The urban cash-based transfer programme in Mutare, Caledonia, Chinhoyi and Mzilikazi, which serves approximately 52 000 people, is at risk of ceasing operations in July 2024 due to lack of funds.
“The current funding shortfalls are particularly concerning, both in terms of humanitarian assistance and resilience building,” WFP said.
“We urge the international community to intervene and address the funding gap to prevent a catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Zimbabwe.”
The agency said as the drought worsens, the need for an expanded food assistance response becomes more urgent.
“We are doing everything possible to support the people of Zimbabwe, but we need the resources to do so. We cannot afford to lose momentum in our response efforts,” it said.
WFP said its programmes were also critical in mitigating the adverse impacts of the El Niño-induced drought and facilitating critical decision-making processes at all levels of governance.
WFP Zimbabwe provided technical support for the 2024 Zimbabwe Rural Livelihood Assessment data analysis and report writing process.
“The findings of this assessment will guide humanitarian response planning to mitigate against the adverse impacts of the El Niño-induced drought and facilitate critical decision-making processes at all levels of governance. The report is anticipated to be released in June,” the statement said.