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Our Work
Logistics
Desert, swamp or jungle, to get food to the hungry, WFP's logistics team has to negotiate some of the toughest terrain on the planet.
In 2012, WFP aims to reach more than 90 million beneficiaries in 74 countries. To achieve this goal, WFP will rely on its impressive logistics capacity.
When the areas needing food are not accessible by road, rail or river, other methods are brought into play. An emergency may require a cargo drop from aircraft or a helicopter airlift, but there are other options too. Locally engaged porters, as well as teams of elephants, yak, donkeys and camels are also used when necessary.
Always on the move
On any given day WFP operates an average of:
- 60 aircraft
- 40 ships
- 5,000 trucks
The different ways WFP transports food can be grouped into three categories: surface transport, shipping and aviation.
Rapid response
About half the food distributed by WFP is sourced directly within the country or region where it is needed. The other half, sourced internationally, is shipped by sea and unloaded in 78 cargo ports around the world.
Thanks to a range of strategies, WFP is always able to provide a rapid response to hunger emergencies. A key element in this response is the WFP-managed network of UN Humanitarian Response Depots. These are hubs, positioned near disaster-prone areas around the world, where emergency supplies are stored in readiness.
Serving the humanitarian community
WFP's expertise in logistics meant that in 2005 the agency was mandated to lead logistics operations whenever a humanitarian emergency requires a joint response from UN agencies and the humanitarian community. The group of agencies or organisations which work together is called the Logistics Cluster.
WFP also provides passenger air transport to the entire humanitarian community through the UN Humanitarian Air Service (see video on right), which goes to more than 200 locations worldwide.
Logistics Latest
Photo Gallery: WFP and Renault Trucks Together on a Road Trip
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WFP and Renault Trucks have teamed up to enhance WFP’s fleet capacities in Eastern Africa. WFP mechanics in various countries will learn about advanced truck repair and maintenance from Renault Truck experts. Maintaining WFP’s own fleet of heavy duty and all-terrain trucks helps us deliver life-saving food to the most remote and inaccessible places.
South Sudan: Reaching the Unreachable
WFP has to mobilise the country's road, river and air networks to reach the most remote places in the world's newest country.
Responding to an 'Emergency' at the Logistics Response Team Training
The water is out again. No showers! Who knows if this a coincidence, or perhaps a part of the simulation? We can’t be sure; the scenario has to be realistic as possible... In the fictitious country of Brindland, a natural disaster has devastated the population, damaged infrastructure, and in some cases, has cut off the humanitarian community from getting aid to the most remote and hard-to-reach populations.
