Earlier Food Security Gains in Gaza at Risk; Food Insecurity Concerns Grow in West Bank

Here are the latest updates on food security and World Food Programme (WFP) operations in Gaza and the West Bank:

Gaza

• In the 42 days of the ceasefire starting January 19, WFP delivered over 88 million pounds of food into Gaza and provided lifesaving assistance to 1.3 million people. In addition, over $6.8 million in electronic cash assistance (e-wallets) supported nearly 135,000 people (26,600 households), helping families to buy what they needed most. 
• Since March 2, WFP has not been able to transport any food supplies into Gaza due to the closure of all border crossing points for both humanitarian and commercial supplies.  
• WFP currently has sufficient food stocks to support active kitchens and bakeries for up to one month, as well as ready-to-eat food packages to support 550,000 people for two weeks.
• WFP has approximately 138 million pounds of food destined for Gaza, stored or in transit in the region. This is equivalent to two to three months of distributions for 1.1 million people, pending authorization to enter Gaza.
• In the first week of March, WFP was able to sustain its activities in Gaza using stocks brought in during the ceasefire. WFP provided food assistance to some 73,000 vulnerable people across Gaza during this period.
• As it did prior to the ceasefire, WFP is reducing the quantity of ready-to-eat food packages provided to families to stretch its supplies and serve more people in need.
• Right now, WFP supports 33 kitchens across Gaza providing a total of 180,000 hot meals daily.
• A total of 25 bakeries are also supported by WFP, but on March 8, six of these bakeries were forced to close due to a shortage of cooking gas.
• Commercial food prices have begun to surge since the March 2 closure of border crossings. In some cases, prices on staple items such as flour, sugar and vegetables have increased over 200%. Traders have begun withholding goods due to uncertainty over when new supplies would arrive.  

West Bank

• WFP is increasingly concerned about growing food insecurity in the West Bank, where military activity, displacement, and movement restrictions are disrupting markets and limiting access to food. 
• Tens of thousands of people in the West Bank have been displaced since mid-January.
• These disruptions and the worsening economic conditions over the last year are putting upward pressure on prices. With rising displacement and unemployment, even basic food items have become unaffordable for many families. 
• WFP is supporting more than 190,000 people with monthly cash vouchers and has provided one-off assistance to 16,000 people most in need. Humanitarian cash assistance can be delivered efficiently through local supply chains and markets. It also helps to stabilize the economy.   

WFP needs $265 million in funding for the next six months for operations to assist 1.4 million people in Gaza and the West Bank.

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