WFP Receives A U.S. Food Shipment In Support Of Yemen’s Poorest Households

The shipment of 9,400 metric tons of wheat from the US Government’s Food for Peace office arrived last week at the Yemeni port of Hodeidah aboard the bulk carrier Liberty Glory.

“This arrival of wheat in Yemen will directly help people who can’t get enough food to live a healthy life,” said WFP Country Director Bishow Parajuli. “There are millions of Yemenis in this plight and WFP is grateful to the government and people of the United States in helping us to meet the challenge of helping those in need.”

The wheat was unloaded from the Liberty Glory’s holds and repacked dockside into 50- kilogram bags and stacked onto trucks for delivery as part of WFP’s emergency rations.

“The U.S. government recognises the degree of food insecurity in Yemen where millions of people do not have access to sufficient food for basic nutritional needs and standards of wellbeing,” said Gerald Feierstein, US Ambassador to Yemen. “The delivery of wheat from the American people represents the commitment of the US Government to providing humanitarian assistance to vulnerable Yemenis.”

WFP will also receive over the coming two months two more US food consignments totalling 42,000 metric tons.

The US is a key donor to WFP activities in Yemen. Last year, it provided WFP with more than 46,000 metric tons of food, valued at almost US$40 million, enough food to feed more than two million hungry Yemenis for six months. “This year, the US is granting US$50 million to WFP’s operations in Yemen,” Parajuli said.

Globally, the United States remains WFP’s largest single donor. This year, the US has already contributed more than US$900 million. In 2012, the US provided US$1.4 billion in support of WFP operations worldwide.

In 2013, WFP’s primary operations in Yemen target five million people, including emergency food assistance for 3.5 million food insecure people and cash transfers for another 400,000; food assistance to 600,000 internally displaced people; and nutritional support for 405,000 children under five and 157,000 pregnant women and nursing mothers.

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WFP is the world's largest humanitarian agency fighting hunger worldwide.  Last year, WFP reached more than 97 million people in 80 countries with food assistance.

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

Bishow Parajuli, WFP/Yemen, Tel. +967 214100 ext 2100, Mob. +967 736522222

Edward Johnson, WFP/Yemen, Tel.+967 214100 ext 2110, Mob. +967 735210222

Fares Khoailed, WFP/Yemen, Tel. 967 214100 ext 2112, Mob. +967 734163556