The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has commenced the distribution of cash and food items to vulnerable households in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to cushion the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The cash and food items were distributed to the beneficiaries of the intervention.
It was gathered that over 57,000 individuals had benefited so far out of the 67,500 beneficiaries in Abuja under this intervention programme.
Recall that the WFP had launched an initiative in October 2020, valued at $3 million into the local economies of three urban hotspots in Abuja, Kano and Lagos under the “One UN Basket Fund Project” focusing on supporting the vulnerable families affected by the pandemic.
The cash and food items distribution is in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development (FMHADMSD), and the Centre for Community Development and Research Network (CCDRN).
Distributing the cash and food items to beneficiaries in Karon Majigi, a suburb in Abuja, WFP Representative in Nigeria, Dr. Paul Howe, said the Federal Government and WFP were providing assistance in three area councils of AMAC, Bwari and Gwagwalada.
He acknowledged the contribution of the government of Switzerland to the intervention. Howe said Switzerland had been a key contributor of providing humanitarian assistance to millions of crisis-affected people in the North-East since 2015.
“The Nigerian Government is providing food support with in-kind cereals, where Switzerland’s assistance via cash transfer to the beneficiaries is complementing the government’s efforts. WFP in coordination with the Federal Government started this intervention since the last week of September, and it will continue for four months.
“This is the first time WFP is expanding into urban centres in Nigeria to serve people and families affected by hunger and severe food insecurity. The response focuses on the urban poor with distributions targeting some of the most vulnerable communities in the selected urban locations where the looming threat of hunger is driving extreme levels of vulnerability,” he noted.
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