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WFP to help over 7,000 affected by drought

    ABIDJAN

    The World Food Programme (WFP) is to distribute aid to thousands of people affected by drought in Zinder, southern Niger, under its Immediate Response Emergency Operation, WFP said in an emergency report on Friday.

    The operation to distribute 430 mt of millet to some 7,170 schoolchildren and their families is scheduled to start on 15 May and will last 30 days, WFP reported, adding that it will later be integrated into a larger WFP emergency operation. According to NGO and government reports, up to 30,675 people have been affected by drought in Zinder region.

    The food situation in the region is “extremely insecure”, WFP said, with reports of cases of moderate and severe malnutrition and some women giving birth to stillborn babies.
    Cereal stocks are also low and prices increased by 50 percent in March, the report added. The food shortages are likely to cause a further exodus of families to Nigeria and the cities of Zinder, Maradi and the capital, Niamey. The emergency operation also aims to encourage families to stay in the area, WFP said.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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