As part of the goal of the World Food Programme (WFP) to support six million people caught up in the world’s fastest-growing humanitarian crisis, it has welcomed a contribution of EUR 25 million from the European Union to provide humanitarian food assistance to people affected by the conflict in Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova.

This funding contributes to multipurpose cash and immediate food relief to families in conflict-affected areas in Ukraine and displaced people from Ukraine in Moldovan transit sites and reception centers.

“As WFP continues to call on everyone to grant safe access to humanitarian relief operations in encircled and partially encircled cities in Ukraine, the generosity of WFP’s partners is enabling us to scale up our response to the conflict to six million people caught up in the world’s fastest-growing humanitarian crisis.”
WFP Executive Director David Beasley

In Ukraine, families in conflict-affected areas are receiving food and ready-to-eat rations, while in areas where markets are functioning, multipurpose cash is being distributed so families can buy what they need most urgently. In Moldova, displaced people from Ukraine currently in transit sites and reception centers receive hot meals.

WFP has achieved more than half of its target

The WFP Executive Director, David Beasley, welcomed this generous contribution from the European Union, and pledged that WFP would use the cash item received to help support the countless families who have had to flee for their lives and are struggling to put food on the table amid this humanitarian catastrophe.

“Thanks to partners like the EU, who have stepped up with immediate funding. The WFP has already reached 3.4 million people in Ukraine and Moldova since the start of the war. But millions more urgently need our help,” he noted.

The European Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, said “Humanitarian partners like WFP continue to deliver urgently needed emergency assistance to the most vulnerable. The European Union has been working around the clock to ensure that life-saving aid reaches civilians in Ukraine.”

Aftermath effect of the war, unpleasant

Over 7.7 million people are displaced inside Ukraine, and the pre-conflict supply chain systems for feeding the country’s population have broken down in many areas. WFP estimates almost half of the people in the country are worried about finding enough to eat.

The conflict in Ukraine is also triggering a wave of collateral hunger elsewhere in the world. Global food prices have increased sharply since the onset of the conflict and are now high. These hikes are expected to limit further access to food for millions of people who are already under stress because of food inflation in their countries.

The United Nations World Food Programme is 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.