WFP Pauses Food Distributions in Northern Areas of Yemen

Photo: WFP/Annabel Symington
Published December 6, 2023

SANA’A – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) announces the pause of General Food Distributions (GFD) in areas of Yemen under the Sana’a Based Authorities’ (SBA) control, driven by limited funding and the absence of an agreement with the authorities on a smaller program that matches available resources to the neediest families.

This difficult decision, made in consultation with donors, comes after nearly a year of negotiations, during which no agreement was reached to reduce the number of people served from 9.5 million to 6.5 million.

Food stocks in the areas under the Sana’a Based Authorities are now almost completely depleted and resuming food assistance, even with an immediate agreement, could take up to as long as four months due to the disruption of the supply chain of humanitarian food assistance into Yemen.

The U.N. World Food Programme will continue its resilience and livelihoods, nutrition, and school meals programs to limit the impact of the pause of food distributions for as long as the agency has sufficient funding and the cooperation of the authorities in the North.

In areas of Yemen under Government control, general food distributions will continue with a heightened focus on the most vulnerable families, aligning with resource adjustments announced last August. Similar prioritization is taking place in nearly half of the U.N. World Food Programme’s operations around the world as the agency navigates the challenging financial landscape that the entire humanitarian sector is facing.

The U.N. World Food Programme’s top priority is the well-being of those affected, and the agency will continue to work towards a breakthrough in talks with the authorities.

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The United Nations World Food Programme is the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and the world’s leading 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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