Limited Emergency Operation (LEO) Ukraine (February 2022 - December 2022)

LEO approved by the ED in February 2022.

Revision 01 approved by ED-DGFAO in March 2022.

Revision 02 approved by the RD in March 2022.

Revision 03 approved by the ED&DGFAO in June 2022.

Revision 04 approved by the ED&DGFAO in August 2022.

After months of rising tensions between Ukraine and the Russian Federation (RF), there has been a significant escalation in armed hostilities in Ukraine as of 24 February 2022, with increased shelling reported in several cities in Ukraine in addition to the areas already in conflict in the east of the country. As per the Inter-Agency Contingency Plan (IACP) on 30 December 2021, indicators point to a potentially dire humanitarian situation.  Various potential scenarios exist, but at the time of writing it is unclear what the humanitarian scale and impact of these unfolding events will be.  There are troubling initial reports of population movements and other factors, though WFP is awaiting the outcome of further assessments. 

Following discussions with the Ukraine United Nations Country Team (UNCT), OCHA, the clusters and other working groups, and aligned with the IACP, WFP will temporarily amplify the capacity of the in-country humanitarian system for an initial period of three months, until the situation has been reassessed, the Government and other humanitarian agencies have scaled up their own mechanisms and/or the crisis has eased. WFP will work on two tracks in parallel.  Firstly, WFP will fill gaps in the response to crisis-affected populations through the provision of immediate food assistance using a combination of cash-based transfers (CBT) and in-kind modalities. Secondly, WFP will support other humanitarian agencies through logistics and telecommunications-related support as well as other on-demand services, as required.

This Limited Emergency Operation (LEO) has been designed considering the lessons learned from previous engagement in Ukraine and feedback from humanitarian partners on the ground. It is envisioned to last for three months. Based on the evolving situation and updated needs analysis, however, WFP will review planning assumptions with partners and adjust as required.