The WFP, part of the United Nations, has raised concerns that 1.4 million individuals in Chad may lose access to food assistance due to lack of funding. This comes at a critical time as the country is receiving a growing number of refugees escaping the conflict in Sudan’s Darfur area.
Due to insufficient funds and growing humanitarian demands, WFP has announced that it will need to temporarily halt food assistance to millions of displaced individuals and refugees in Nigeria, the Central African Republic, and Cameroon starting in December.
Starting in January, the suspension will also apply to Chad. This decision, described as “brutal”, will have an impact on individuals fleeing from Sudan who will no longer receive food assistance as they cross the border, according to a statement from the World Food Programme.
Nearly half a million Sudanese have crossed into Chad since a power struggle between the two men leading Sudan’s national army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in April sent the country into war. More than 90% of these refugees already do not have enough to eat, according to a recent assessment.
Many people have fled from West Darfur, where there have been reports of targeted killings, sexual violence, and other violations of human rights based on ethnicity. In recent events, the RSF and Arab militias have allegedly killed around 1,000 people from the Masalit community in the village of Ardamata, leading to concerns of a potential repeat of the genocide that occurred in the early 2000s.
Pierre Honnorat, the country director for Chad at WFP, stated that this neglected crisis has spread rapidly while the world is preoccupied with other urgent situations. He added that the number of Darfuris seeking refuge in Chad in the past six months exceeds the total number in the previous two decades. It is imperative that we do not allow our life-saving efforts to come to a stop while the world watches.
Hundreds of thousands of Chad citizens are also going hungry because of the effects of the climate crisis, inter-communal tensions and rising food and fuel prices. Honnorat warned that cutting food aid would undo years of work combating hunger and “paves the way for crises of nutrition, crises of instability, and crises of displacement”.
The World Food Programme requires 185 million dollars (equivalent to 148 million pounds) to sustain its food aid efforts in Chad for an additional six months. The organization is currently facing a global financial dilemma, resulting in reduced food rations and limited operations in numerous nations.
Development Initiatives, a data consultancy, reported that in 2022, the number of people in need of humanitarian aid has increased by almost one-third to reach a record high of 407 million. However, at the same time, the funding for this aid is decreasing.
Source: theguardian.com
