Republic of Korea Contributes US$20 Million to Support WFP’s Emergency Food Assistance in the Gaza Strip and West Bank
Jerusalem – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) welcomed a critical contribution of US$20 million from the Republic of Korea, enabling WFP to continue providing life-saving food assistance to families severely affected by the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip and those facing heightened food insecurity amid escalating violence and instability in the West Bank.
This timely support from the Republic of Korea will allow WFP to reach more than 622,500 Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank who are in dire need of food assistance. The funds will be utilized to provide emergency food assistance to displaced families in Gaza, support vulnerable Bedouin communities in the West Bank, and deliver electronic food vouchers to severely food-insecure families.
For a year now, the ongoing conflict, shifting battlefields, and widespread destruction, displacement, and hunger have shaped a bleak humanitarian reality in the Gaza Strip, leaving more than two million people entirely dependent on humanitarian aid. According to the latest Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) report, the entire population of Gaza—2.2 million people—faces critical levels of food insecurity, and projects that over 90 percent of the population will face crisis levels of hunger or worse in the coming months if the conflict continues and humanitarian aid is restricted.
As hostilities persist in Gaza, increasing violence and movement restrictions in the West Bank have exacerbated daily suffering, leading to severe humanitarian consequences. WFP estimates that the rising violence in the West Bank could push at least 600,000 people into food insecurity, representing a 42 percent increase since the onset of the conflict.
“WFP is grateful for the Republic of Korea’s generous contribution, which serves as a lifeline for hundreds of thousands of people on the brink of famine in Gaza and facing acute food insecurity in the West Bank. This donation embodies the spirit of global solidarity and partnership, enabling us to deliver essential food assistance to those most in need,” says Antoine Renard, WFP Representative and Country Director for Palestine. “We remain steadfast in our commitment to alleviate the suffering of vulnerable communities in Gaza and the West Bank, ensuring that no one is left behind during these challenging times.”
The Republic of Korea’s contribution plays a fundamental role in enhancing the capacity of the WFP as a humanitarian actor to respond to crises by maintaining crucial lifelines. This support aims to reinforce the resilience of at-risk populations, ensuring their access to critical resources during emergencies. WFP is currently delivering vital food assistance to over 1.4 million people across Gaza and the West Bank each month, while also working to restore and strengthen disrupted food systems.
WFP’s efforts extend to United Nations shelters, communities, and makeshift camps, where it provides nutritious and diversified food to those in need across Gaza and the West Bank. Despite the immense challenges WFP faces in delivering essential food aid daily to Palestinian families, contributions from dedicated donors like the Republic of Korea ensure that this critical lifeline endures.
The United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.
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