News releases

ROME – The G7’s strong commitment to global food security in 2022 must be maintained in 2023 as new crises in Sudan, Haiti and the Sahel push more people into hunger, the UN World Food Programme said today, just days before G7 leaders were due to meet in Japan.

ROME/PORT SUDAN – The UN World Food Programme warned today that an additional 2 - 2.5 million people in Sudan are expected to slip into hunger in the coming months as a result of the ongoing violence in the country. This would take acute food insecurity in Sudan to record levels, with more than 19 million people affected, two fifths of the population.

N'DJAMENA – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, warned today that WFP will be forced to make additional cuts to already dwindling food assistance to refugees in April and may face a complete suspension of assistance in May 2023 - without immediate and sustained funding.

LILONGWE – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed a contribution of EUR 500,000 from the Government of France to support innovative home-grown school feeding activities in Chikwawa and Nsanje districts – two of the worst cyclone-affected districts in southern Malawi.

SUVA: The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP)-operated Pacific Humanitarian Air Service transported 15 metric tonnes of critical relief assistance to Port Vila, bolstering the government-led response in Vanuatu after twin cyclones and earthquakes ravaged the country.

2022 Overview highlights the need to focus on trade as an enabler to achieve food security and nutrition

CAIRO – As the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region celebrates the beginning of the Muslim Holy Month of Ramadan, it is experiencing a deepening food security crisis due to the combination of high food inflation and collapsing currencies. This is affecting millions of people across the region, particularly those living in countries already facing conflict and instability.

As needs grow and refugees continue to arrive, UN agencies and partner organizations today appealed for $116 million to provide life-saving assistance to Somali refugees seeking safety in an extremely remote area of Ethiopia’s Somali region.

DAMASCUS – An average monthly wage in Syria currently covers about a quarter of a family’s food needs, the UN World Food Programme said today, highlighting an urgent need for increased humanitarian assistance as the country grapples with the devastating impact of recent earthquakes and a 12-year-long conflict.

Joint US/UN News Release/NIAMEY– The combined effects of conflict, climate shocks, and high food prices continues to drive hunger up and push basic meals out of the reach of millions in Niger, demanding immediate and collective action, United States Ambassador to the UN Agencies in Rome Cindy McCain told journalists at the end of their week-long, U.S.- sponsored field visit to Zinder, Dosso and Tillaberi regions.

FAO-IFAD-WFP push to enhance rural women and girls’ digital capabilities and tackle the barriers they face to access technology to be equal contributors to our agrifood systems.

HATAY, Türkiye – The Executive Director of the UN World Food Programme (WFP), David Beasley, has concluded a visit to the earthquake affected region of Hatay in southern Türkiye where he witnessed first-hand the incomprehensible devastation caused by the earthquake that struck on 6 February. With some 18 million people affected across southern Türkiye and northwest Syria, tens of thousands of lives have been lost, and millions upon millions of people have lost their homes, livelihoods and assets.

ROME – The Executive Director of the UN World Food Programme David Beasley and Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Péter Szijjártó met in Rome today to discuss expanded collaboration on supporting vulnerable populations and enhancing administrative efficiency.

Kigali: The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has increased food assistance for refugees in all five camps across Rwanda by 43 percent to help them meet their basic needs following the increase in food and energy prices globally. From February 2023, refugees classified as highly vulnerable, will receive RWF 10,000 (1) per person per month (increased from RWF 7,000). Refugees classified as moderately vulnerable, will receive RWF 5,000 (2) per person per month (increased from RWF 3,500). These are reduced rations from the adjusted full entitlements of RWF 13,600 for highly and RWF 7,800 for moderately vulnerable refugees due to WFP’s funding shortfalls.

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) Director General Qu Dongyu, International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva, World Bank Group (WBG) President David Malpass, World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director David Beasley and World Trade Organization (WTO) Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala issued the following joint statement calling for continued urgent action to address the global crisis on food and nutrition security.

Guinea BISSAU –The Government of Guinea-Bissau and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) have launched a new five-year Country Strategic Plan to achieve food security and improved nutrition.

24/01/2023, Bangkok – Asia’s cities are growing at such a fast pace that nearly 55 percent of the region’s enormous population is expected to reside in urban areas by 2030, and that will have equally enormous consequences for urban food security and nutrition, according to the main findings of a new report by four United Nations agencies.

KIGALI – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed a contribution of US$7.2 million from the United States (through USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance) to provide life-saving food assistance in the form of cash transfers and treatment for malnutrition including social and behavioral change initiatives for 113,500 refugees living in all five camps in Rwanda.

Official launch by FAO, WFP and the Ministry of Agriculture of the Integrated Acute Food Insecurity Phase Classification Results Study in Lebanon.

NEW YORK/ROME - The United Nations World Food Programme welcomes a US$ 10.7 million grant from The Rockefeller Foundation to help vulnerable children get better access to nutritious food through school feeding programmes in Benin, Ghana, Honduras, and India. The two-and-a-half-year initiative focuses on including fortified foods in school meals as well as advocating for more nutritious food throughout the programmes.

YOKOHAMA – The United Nations World Food Programme has welcomed a contribution of around US$130 million from the Government of Japan to support vulnerable people in 37 countries across Asia, the Middle East and Africa amid the deepening global hunger crisis.

YAOUNDE - The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) welcomes a contribution of EUR 4.2 million from the European Union (EU) through the EU's Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations Department (ECHO) to strengthen WFP response to the emergency food needs of 598,000 people in the northwest and southwest regions of Cameroon. WFP is providing life-saving food assistance to more than 300,000 women, men and children affected by the conflict in both regions.

KAMPONG CHHNANG & PURSAT – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sport, with support from KOICA, are this month recognizing the role school cooks play in the school meals programme through a series cooking competitions.

YEREVAN – With a generous contribution of US$750,000 from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) will support the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs to strengthen the shock responsiveness of the social protection system in Armenia.

YEREVAN – The UN World Food Programme (WFP) welcomes a US$ 1 million contribution from the Government of Switzerland to improve resilience and provide a long-term economic support to the border communities of Armenia. Through the aid approved by the Swiss Development Agency (SDC), WFP will directly target 3,000 people from 15 borderline settlements․