The World Food Program (WFP) announced the cessation of the distribution of food aid in areas under the control of the Houthi group, in northern Yemen, due to a lack of funding and the failure of an agreement with the group to give priority to the most needy.
The program said in a press statement, issued today, Tuesday, It decided to "stop the general food aid program in Houthi-controlled areas, due to limited funding and the failure to reach an agreement with the authorities in order to give priority to the most vulnerable population groups facing the risk of hunger, with the available funding."
The statement added that the program He was forced to make this “difficult” decision in consultation with donors, and after about a year of negotiations with the Houthi group, “during which no agreement was reached to reduce the number of people benefiting from direct food aid from 9.5 million to 6.5 million people.”
The program ruled out In his statement, he expressed the possibility of aid returning in the near future, and said: “As food stocks begin to run out in the areas under the control of the group, even if an immediate agreement is reached with the authorities, the resumption of food aid may take about four months due to the interruption of the supply chain for humanitarian food aid.” ".
The UN agency set two conditions for continuing to implement the rest of its humanitarian programs to limit the impact of the temporary cessation of food distribution in the north of the country, and said: "Continuing the implementation of programs related to strengthening resilience, livelihoods, nutrition, and school meals is subject to the availability of the necessary funding and cooperation. The authorities in Sanaa.”
The statement indicated that the process of distributing food supplies in areas under the influence of the recognized government will continue according to the same approach, that is, focusing more on the most vulnerable and needy families, within the framework of “similar arrangements to determine priorities in about half of the operations.” The program around the world, due to the huge funding gap.”
The World Food Program stressed the continuation of negotiations in order to reach a solution, and said: “While our priority is to provide a decent life for the people affected by this suspension, we will continue to work to make progress in Negotiations with the authorities in Sanaa.