First WFP Food Supplies for Vulnerable Schoolchildren Arrive in Venezuela

CARACAS– The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has moved its first food supplies to its logistics hub in Maracaibo, Venezuela, as it prepares to launch its school meals program for vulnerable schoolchildren and school employees in the country.

As schools in Venezuela are currently closed, the U.N. World Food Programme will provide take-home rations that include rice, lentils, salt and vegetable oil, prioritizing school children under the age of six in areas most affected by food insecurity. The 42,000 food packages arriving in Maracaibo will be distributed in the first month of operation.

The U.N. World Food Programme aims to progressively reach up to 185,000 children and school personnel by the end of this year and 1.5 million by the end of the 2022-2023 school year. The U.N. World Food Programme will manage its own supply chain, from purchasing food to distributing it in schools.

TheU.N. World Food Programme’s work in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela will focus on the provision of nutritious school meals, the rehabilitation of school canteens and the training of school staff to observe and implement the highest food safety practices.

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The United Nations World Food Programme is the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.  We are the world’s largest humanitarian organization, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

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