The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has started delivering food to Afghanistan from Tajikistan in support of the agency’s emergency response for Afghan families facing hunger this winter.
According to press release issued by WFP Tajikistan on November 28, the first convoy of seven trucks has left WFP warehouses in Dushanbe, heading to Afghanistan’s Badakhshan province in the northeast.
Some 2,500 tons of wheat flour procured from the region will be delivered in the coming days and used by WFP Afghanistan in its lifesaving operations.
“Racing against time, WFP colleagues in Afghanistan need all the support we can provide to preposition food before snow cuts off roads, especially in the remote districts such as those in Badakhshan,” said WFP Representative and Country Director in Tajikistan Adham Musallam during a ceremony to mark the departure of the aid, attended by representatives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Emergencies Committee under the Government of Tajikistan.
“We thank the Government of Tajikistan for standing with the Afghan people at this critical juncture. The corridor is extremely timely in helping us bring food into Afghanistan through border crossings,” added Adham Musallam.
He also thanked the Tajik Government for its support to the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) managed by WFP. Regular flights are now connecting Dushanbe with Kabul and other destinations in Afghanistan and is open to the entire humanitarian community.
Afghanistan is fast becoming the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. WFP has been ramping up lifesaving support, reaching 14.8 million people with food and nutrition assistance since the beginning of this year. However, the needs are immense. The agency reportedly needs US$220 million per month to reach 23 million people facing acute food insecurity in 2022.
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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