WFP warns of grim Christmas for the hungry

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) has warned of a grim Christmas season and new year for the millions of people across Southern Africa who are facing hunger. "There will be serious health and nutritional repercussions if people have to accept a further reduction in their meagre [food aid] ration," Mike Sackett, WFP Regional Director for Southern Africa, said in a statement. The agency lacks the funding to ensure adequate food supplies to assist millions of people in southern African countries who have suffered the combined impact of erratic weather conditions, HIV/AIDS and weakened capacity for governance. According to the Human Development Report 2004, issued by the UN Development Programme, 17 countries in the world had negative Human Development Index growth between 1995 and 2002. Eight of these were in Southern Africa, including Lesotho, Namibia, Malawi, Swaziland and Zambia. The AIDS pandemic, as well as entrenched poverty, has played a significant role in this downward spiral. "HIV/AIDS is exacting a devastating toll, particularly in small countries like Lesotho and Swaziland, but donor priorities appear to have shifted while millions suffer," Sackett said. "Without international assistance, the high HIV prevalence rates will not go down, nor will the region recover." WFP noted that it had been steadily cutting rations to more than 2.8 million people over the last six months, due to a decline in contributions from donors "beset by compelling demands for numerous crises". "The press plays a significant role in donors' decisions about where to send funds. With the situation in southern Africa more complex than the average breaking news story, it's harder to convince people that the need here is as great as anywhere else," Sackett explained. Many of the agency's beneficiaries in the region are living with HIV/AIDS; many of them are children - most have been forced to survive on half their normal ration, or less. In October WFP launched a US $404 million three-year appeal to feed people in Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland and Zambia - the core countries affected by emergency food shortages over the last two years. "To date, WFP has received only 2.5 percent (about US $10 million), including a timely $3.1 million donation from the government of Japan," WFP said. Due to the poor donor response, the agency has been forced to source $12 million in emergency loans, including $5 million from the United Nations Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which must be repaid. LEAN SEASON "The traditional lean season - from January to March - will be particularly tough, as we will have to cut rations even further unless we receive immediate cash donations," Sackett noted. He said WFP would run out of food for Lesotho by the end of January, and for other countries in the region in the following weeks. "By the beginning of March we won't have any cereals left," Sackett added. WFP said it required immediate contributions of $63 million to meet food aid needs in the five countries during the first quarter of 2005. "Cash contributions are essential to enable local food purchases, which also benefit local economies. Food shipments from abroad would not arrive in time to help the most vulnerable people through the lean season," the agency commented. "The five countries are not alone in seeking funds: Angola and Namibia are equally left off the international agenda, but children in both countries feel the same hunger pains as children everywhere, and they shouldn't be forgotten," said Sackett. Angola's displaced and newly resettled refugees have already experienced significant food reductions. With the rainy season underway, many roads have become impassable, limiting local food availability. The agency needs $50 million to meet food aid needs in Angola until the end of 2005. It also needs $3.4 million to continue supporting more than 100,000 orphans and other children affected by HIV/AIDS in Namibia up to next March. In Zambia WFP still requires $8 million to assist about 86,000 refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Angola. "WFP is committed to helping the most vulnerable survive and thrive, but we urgently need donations, so that we can provide people with some Christmas cheer and hope of a better life in the New Year," Sackett concluded. The agency noted contributions towards its operations in the year ahead from Japan ($3.1 million), the Netherlands ($3.4 million), the European Union ($2.8 million), and Switzerland ($750,000).