The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed a generous contribution of €28 million from the German Government, which will support food assistance to 275,000 displaced Iraqis in four governorates across the country.
Franz-Josef Kremp (pictured), German Ambassador to Iraq, said:
“Germany highly appreciates WFP’s efforts to address the needs of the most vulnerable people in Iraq who are in dire need of life-saving assistance.
“This contribution will help WFP address hunger in places where there is food on the market but people affected by the conflict cannot afford to buy it.”
With this contribution, WFP will continue to use SCOPE, its system to manage food assistance for people receiving WFP support, in combination with financial services in Iraq such as mobile money.
These systems will allow WFP to increase the scale and reach of cash-based transfers so that vulnerable Iraqis can buy the nutritious foods of their choice from local shops. Every month, families are notified via text message that their electronic credit allocation of around €15 per family member has been reloaded.
Nearly 74,000 women and more than 128,000 children under the age of five will be assisted through this programme.
WFP Representative Sally Haydock said:
“On behalf of the Iraqi people whose lives have been torn apart by the conflict, we thank the German Government for this very significant contribution.
“We deliver cash assistance, so that the people we serve benefit from greater choice, more balanced diets, and higher purchasing power.”
Germany is one of WFP’s most important humanitarian partners. Since 2014, Germany has supported WFP in Iraq with €84 million, enabling a significant increase in food assistance for the most vulnerable Iraqis through ready-to-eat meals, monthly family food rations and cash-based transfers.