WFP warning on food crisis

The UN's World Food Programme (WFP) has warned that it does not have the resources to assist 1.5 million Angolans in need of aid over the next 18 months. WFP's Marcelo Spina told IRIN the agency had received about 12 percent of its US $241 million appeal. "Twelve percent [of the appeal] at this point is a relief compared to two weeks ago when we had almost nothing, at least now we can [say] that our operations will definitely be running until December. It's still very worrying [the shortfall] but it's somehow a relief that we now have [resources for] a few more months [of WFP operations]," Spina said. The full extent of the humanitarian crisis in Angola only became known following the 4 April ceasefire agreement, that ended a decades-long war between the government and UNITA rebels and allowed aid agencies to access previously isolated areas. WFP and other humanitarian actors have also been providing relief food to former UNITA soldiers and their families in quartering areas set up as part of the demobilisation process. In its latest update on the situation in Angola, WFP said: "As of 19 July, WFP has provided food aid in 35 of the 42 Family Reception Areas (FRAs) assisting 287,500 new beneficiaries. In addition, food has been distributed in 18 of the newly accessed locations around the country, to over 92,800 people." In Bengo province, WFP will provide food to support a new supplementary feeding centre in Mimbota, with an average admission of 125 malnourished children daily. A polio vaccination campaign will also begin soon in the province. WFP is to provide food-for-work incentives to the vaccination team. In Benguela province, the second round of general food distribution in the FRAs was to continue this week. While in Huambo province, following verification and registration of the population in FRAs of Sambo, Lunge, Mega and Chiteta, WFP intends to target 75,850 beneficiaries for food assistance. However, poor transport infrastructure and the danger of landmines has served to halt the registration and verification process in Huila province. The "exercise scheduled for last week has been suspended until the completion of the de-mining activities on the road between Dongo and Matome. De-mining is also needed on the axis Matala-Chicomba that remains cut-off from the other provinces," WFP said. Spina told IRIN that although the government had begun a programme to repair roads and bridges, emergency repairs were needed where the delivery of aid was being hampered. "What we need right now is emergency road repairs, there's still a lot to be done. Our operations, especially in the eastern and northern parts of the country are really difficult, we are still not able to reach certain parts because of problems with roads and bridges and mines," said Spina. In central Malange province, 10,150 vulnerable persons are targeted for the next food distribution. In the northern provinces of Uige and Zaire provinces, WFP resumed general food distribution to the FRA of Mandimba/Zaire after having overcome a number of logistical constraints, the agency said. Meanwhile in Kuanza Norte province, an inter-agency mission conducted a nutritional assessment in the municipality of Samba Caju and the FRA of Mussabo. The mission recommended that nutritional feeding programmes be established for children at risk. Said Spina: "It's quite amazing that we have reached more than 50 new areas since the ceasefire took place, which means about 400,000 new beneficiaries have been receiving food on a regular basis. We still continue to work round the clock in order to reach more areas and more people, we know there are still people in need of assistance." Unexpected population movements made it difficult to estimate the numbers of those in need and where they were. "The movement of people in Angola right now has been astonishing, it's hard to keep up with the result of so many people moving, inside and out of Angola. Normally we hear of the inflow from Zambia and other countries, a lot of those people are not accounted for. It's a very, very difficult matter to say how many people are still moving in the bush and are in need of aid," Spina said. During the first three weeks of July, the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported the arrival of 115, mostly Angolan, refugees in Namibia. "UNHCR attributed these new arrivals to the deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Angola. Some refugees also crossed the border to join their family in Osire camp," the WFP report said.