Start of food aid distributions

Humanitarian agencies have started distributing emergency food aid to some 30,000 vulnerable conflict-affected people in Freetown, a regional WFP spokesman told IRIN today. He said the first to receive food were some 6,000-10,000 people in the city’s central stadium. Some 40,000 people fleeing conflict had sought refuge in the main stadium, but most have now left, he said. The food distributions are being organised by an inter-agency committee, which includes CRS, World Vision, CARE and WFP, among others. More assessments are required to determine how many residents need food aid, but relief distributions will only target needy vulnerable groups, not the general population, he added. An estimated 3,000-8,000 mt of food aid are currently stored in Freetown.