The United Nations (UN) World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed a contribution of N$40 million from the European Union (EU), which will help WFP deliver critical food assistance to 30 000 vulnerable people in Namibia affected by Covid-19 and drought.
The EU funding will support severely food insecure communities living in informal settlements in the
Khomas, Omusati and Erongo regions through September 2021. WFP will help them through food distributions, cash transfers and vouchers.
The new contribution will also tackle malnutrition among children.
“The EU, as one of the largest humanitarian and development donors in the world, is supporting humanitarian partners throughout the region to address the needs caused by recurrent natural disasters affecting the most vulnerable communities,” said Alexandre Castellano, who leads the EU’s humanitarian response in the Southern Africa and Indian Ocean region.
The onset of Covid-19 early this year and the implementation of measures to curb its spread worsened the food security situation in Namibia. People in informal urban and peri-urban settlements, which have expanded in recent years, are most affected. This includes marginalised communities dependent on government relief programs and casual work on commercial farms.
“Stringent measures to curb the spread of Covid-19 have strongly affected the livelihoods of vulnerable people, especially those in the informal sector,” said George Fedha, WFP’s country director and representative in Namibia. “This contribution comes at a crucial time, allowing WFP to better address their precarious food security and nutrition situation.”
WFP will be implementing this contribution in partnership with UNICEF and the government of Namibia, allowing for the complementarity of efforts to address food and nutrition security holistically.