Food reaches Makeni

Relief agencies have begun distributing food to thousands of people in the rebel-controlled northern town of Makeni, humanitarian sources told IRIN on Monday. Wagdi Othman, a spokesman for the World Food Programme (WFP) in Abidjan, told IRIN relief agencies sent a 65-truck convoy carrying 1,200 mt of food to the town on Saturday. "Distributions started on Sunday to a registered caseload of 97,000 in the Makeni area," he said. A spokesman of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Freetown told IRIN the delivery of food to Makeni was a "collaborative effort" involving WFP, World Vision International, Catholic Relief Services and CARE. "This food distribution will help to alleviate the poor nutritional situation in Makeni but future interventions will depend on security," the OCHA official said. [See separate Item: irin-english-1593, titled 'Food aid reaches Makeni']