WFP launches US $2.7 million programme

The UN World Food Programme (WFP) will supply Mozambique US $2.7 million in new relief aid, a WFP spokesperson told IRIN on Thursday. Dominic Scalpelli said the assistance was expected to help an estimated 80,000 people and mainly constituted food staples such as maize and beans. He said the aid, to be distributed in conjunction with the government and NGOs, was designed to help people until the next expected harvest in April. Scalpelli said the climate in Mozambique had changed dramatically. Until a few weeks ago a large part of the country had been hit by drought. But torrential rain in the last few weeks had resulted in large scale flooding, particularly in the southern and central regions, where thousands of farmers lost their crops to the flooding. WFP was watching the situation carefully and was ready to provide further assistance should the Mozambique government need it, he added.