Ukraine emergency | World Food Programme

Якщо ви в Україні і потребуєте допомоги чи інформації, натисніть тут

The war in Ukraine continues to displace people, damage infrastructure, disrupt supply chains and hold back the country’s economy. One in three households is estimated to be food-insecure, rising to one in two in some areas of the east and south.

More than 5 million Ukrainians are internally displaced and nearly 6 million are living as refugees in Europe. Many of those who remain have lost their livelihoods, especially in areas close to the front lines. Those who returned are struggling to rebuild their lives, having run out of money or found their homes reduced to rubble.

The war and the energy crisis – the latter resulting from attacks on infrastructure – are disrupting food production and commercial supply chains inside the country, leaving many communities in the east and south with no reliable access to food.

Since March 2022, WFP has distributed food and cash assistance equivalent to 2.2 billion meals to families displaced and affected by the war, partnering directly with local responders.

An estimated 98,000 refugees from Ukraine remain in Moldova, primarily women, children and the elderly, adding pressure to an already fragile economy. WFP provides hot meals to refugees in reception centres, along with cash to host families.

Ukraine is one of the world's major breadbaskets, producing enough food to feed 400 million people per year prior to the war. The war has drastically cut supplies for countries in acute need while driving up food prices. WFP has supported efforts to reopen the Black Sea ports and is working around the clock to transport food from Ukraine to countries in need since an agreement was reached. WFP has chartered more than 24 vessels under the Black Sea Initiative, allowing Ukrainian wheat to be shipped to countries in need.

What the World Food Programme is doing to respond to the Ukraine emergency

Cash assistance: WFP is prioritizing cash assistance wherever banks are functioning and food is easily accessible. Cash assistance gives people the freedom to meet their essential needs as they choose, and stimulates local economies. WFP has distributed more than US$450 million in cash assistance to over 2.6 million people since March 2022.
Food assistance: WFP delivers food kits and ready-to-eat food rations, primarily in hard-to-reach and frontline areas under intense fighting, where commercial supply lines are disrupted and access to food is unreliable. Food kits typically comprise wheat flour or rice, pasta, sunflower oil, sugar and canned beans or meat. WFP buys almost all of this food inside Ukraine and works with local bakeries to deliver bread.
Support to Ukrainian refugees in Moldova: WFP serves daily hot meals to Ukrainian refugees living in reception centres in Moldova, and provides cash assistance to over 13,000 Moldovan families hosting Ukrainian refugees.
Emergency telecommunications and logistics: On behalf of the United Nations, WFP coordinates humanitarian logistics and telecommunications services in Ukraine as the lead organisation of the Logistics Cluster and the Emergency Telecommunications Cluster. The Logistics Cluster consolidates and shares information on logistics services, facilities and access constraints, provides road transport, cargo delivery and storage services, and supports cargo consolidation and planning for humanitarian convoys.
Demining and food systems: WFP is working with FAO, the Government and the Fondation Suisse de Deminage to clear mines from farm land and small plots, and thereby help restore rural livelihoods, boost agricultural production, and phase out the need for food assistance among thousands of families. The initial phase of the project is in the Kharkiv region. WFP continues to scale up its procurement from Ukrainian food producers, both for food assistance inside the country and for humanitarian operations globally.