German Support Helps WFP Continue To Assist Conflict-Affected People In Ukraine

“WFP is very grateful to Germany for this contribution that will help us provide assistance to tens of thousands of people who no longer have means to secure their most basic food needs,” said WFP Representative in Ukraine Dorte Ellehammer.

Germany is one of the top donors to WFP’s emergency operation in Ukraine. In 2015, Germany contributed €4.5 million to WFP for work in the country. 

“The German Government is gravely concerned about the desperate situation of the many internally displaced people due to the conflict,” said Germany’s Ambassador in Ukraine Christof Weil. “Germany recognizes the importance of continuing to provide assistance to civilians who are suffering, until a durable solution to the conflict is found.”

Since August 2014, WFP has been providing food assistance to IDPs, returnees and residents in the conflict-affected eastern Ukraine through monthly food baskets and cash-based transfers.

People receiving a cash-based transfer by means of a food voucher are entitled to receive 550 Ukrainian hryvnia per month (approximately €20) which they can use at local supermarkets to buy the foods of their choice, including fresh produce. Recipients of the food rations receive basic items such as pasta, fortified wheat flour, beans, canned meat and fish, sugar, iodized salt and fortified vegetable oil.

WFP works in two oblasts affected by the conflict - Donetsk and Luhansk - and offers cash-based transfers in the form of vouchers in areas where food is available in local markets and where financial institutions are functioning.

The two-year long conflict in eastern Ukraine has left around 1.5 million people food-insecure, including almost 300,000 people who are severely food-insecure and in need of immediate assistance. WFP aims to reach nearly 280,000 of the most vulnerable people with monthly food assistance over the second half of this year.

Since November 2014, WFP has distributed emergency assistance to over 650,000 people in need in Ukraine. WFP will continue to provide either cash-based transfers or food assistance to the most vulnerable among those affected by conflict there.

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WFP is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience. Each year, WFP assists some 80 million people in around 80 countries.

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For more information please contact (email address: firstname.lastname@wfp.org):

Deborah Nguyen, WFP/Kiev, Tel.+ 380 50 363 38 57