In 2011, WFP this year aims to feed 1.2 million people in Mogadishu, central and northern Somalia including malnourished children and their families but it needs the resources to do so.
The total number of people being fed by WFP in Mogadishu stands at 240,000. This includes 20 feeding centres that WFP supports across Mogadishu, feeding a total of 85,000 people each day.
In March, WFP and its partners began an emergency distribution of food to an additional 50,000 people who had moved into the capital in response to the drought gripping much of the country.
Overall in responding to increasing needs in 2011, WFP is using general food distributions where the need is clear but also focusing on approaches that are more tightly targeted – such as supplementary feeding of malnourished children and Food for Assets and Food for Work programmes.
WFP is also concentrating more on nutrition programming. The two main components are Targeted Supplementary Feeding Programmes and Mother and Child Health and Nutrition. WFP is working on establishing a permanent network of nutrition facilities in order to ensure a more effective response to crises in Somalia as well as seasonal variations.
In support of providing emergency food assistance, WFP is implementing two Special Operations. The first enhances WFP logistics operations in Somalia and facilitates the delivery of humanitarian assistance through emergency repairs and rehabilitation works at Mogadishu and Bossaso sea ports, as well as road and bridge rehabilitation at targeted key corridors.
The second Special Operation facilitates the delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance and the movement of aid workers in Somalia by providing critical and safe air services in Somalia.
Naval escorts continue to be vital for ships carrying WFP food into Somalia in order to protect our life-saving supply lines against the threat of piracy.
All WFP food for Somalia arrives by sea. Since the start of naval escorts for ships carrying WFP food to Somali ports in November 2007, not a single ship loaded with WFP food heading to Somalia was attacked by pirates.
These escorts are currently provided by the European Union Operation Atalanta and NATO. More than 620,000 metric tons of WFP food – enough to feed 1.2 million people for one year – have been escorted safely to Somalia since November 2007.