Food aid reaches more people in Darfur – WFP

Oct 10, 2006 (KHARTOUM) — The World Food Programme announced today that in September, food rations reached more than 158,000 people in Darfur, western Sudan, who have been cut off in recent months.

The number of people not reached has been dropping steadily from 470,000 in
July to 355,000 in August and now 224,000. While heartened by this
improvement, among the 224,000 not reached last month are 139,000 who have
gone without food aid for four months, the WFP said.

Although some areas of Darfur are still inaccessible, WFP successfully distributed food aid to a total of three million conflict-affected people in Darfur in September.

Figures released today show that the improvement in reaching beneficiaries
is thanks to the strong cooperation among the humanitarian aid community to
negotiate access and organize delivery. WFP food aid was distributed in
parts of Darfur previously cut off by fighting and banditry.

“Despite the difficult security situation, WFP and our partners in
non-governmental organisations (NGOs) were able to take advantage of
windows of opportunity to deliver long-awaited food aid to parts of North
Darfur. We are working hard to reach those who remain cut off,” said Kenro
Oshidari, WFP Representative in Sudan.

Those who were newly reached last month live in the northernmost part of
Darfur. They were given a double ration to cover the months of September
and October; continued insecurity means that WFP cannot guarantee that
access for food deliveries will be available this month.

“The situation is especially serious because we are in the annual ‘hunger
season’ just before the harvest, when there is very little food available,”
Oshidari said. “In a volatile situation, food aid is vital to stability..”

The harvest is expected to begin soon, so food availability in communities
should improve. However, the persistent insecurity means that some people ?
if they were lucky enough to have planted at all ? may be prevented from
harvesting their crops.

However, the situation across the region remains precarious. Carjacking and
harassment of drivers of trucks carrying supplies increased last month,
hampering the operations of many national and international NGOs and UN
agencies.

WFP and other aid groups have been warning that the Darfur region was reaching a critical state. Mounting instability in many parts of the region has made it more difficult for aid workers to reach more than three million people who need international aid. Twelve humanitarian workers have been killed in Darfur since May ? more than the total number since the conflict began in early 2003.

Thanks to the recent confirmation of some major donations, so far this year, WFP has received 89 percent of the US$746 million required for its emergency operation.