Japan contributes additional US$5 million to WFP in Afghanistan where food ration cuts push tens of thousands of families to the brink
KABUL - The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) welcomes a US$5 million contribution from the Government of Japan towards its emergency response in Afghanistan. This latest funding comes at a critical time when WFP has been forced to reduce lifesaving assistance in March for at least 4 million people due to a lack of funds and 9 million people could go without food aid in April if no new funding is received.
“The Government of Japan has been a consistent and strong supporter of the Afghan people and of WFP over the past years. Japan sees food assistance as one of the primary ways to reach sustainable development and human security”, said Ambassador Takashi Okada. “WFP is an important partner with field-proven capability to deliver Japan’s humanitarian assistance for the benefit of some of the world’s most vulnerable people.”
Of this latest Japanese contribution, US$4 million will be used to provide families with food assistance through commodity vouchers supplied by local businesses and US$1 million through in-kind food assistance.
“We are grateful to the Government of Japan for this latest contribution. WFP’s food assistance is today the last lifeline for millions of Afghans in a country that is at the highest risk of famine in a quarter of a century,” said Hsiao-Wei Lee, WFP Country Director in Afghanistan. “Catastrophic hunger knocks on Afghanistan’s doors and unless humanitarian support is sustained, hundreds of thousands more Afghans will need assistance to survive.”
Currently, nearly 20 million Afghans do not know where their next meal will come from. Six million of them are one step away from famine. WFP urgently needs US$93 million to assist 13 million people in April and US$800 million for the next six months.
The latest contribution from Japan is part of a US$35 million contribution for WFP globally. For 2022, Japan was one of WFP Afghanistan’s top ten donors.
This new funding brings Japan’s total contribution towards WFP’s humanitarian response in Afghanistan to US$96.57 million over the past five years. Early 2023, Japan contributed US$12.4 million to WFP in Afghanistan, enabling WFP to provide life-saving food assistance and nutritional services to 330,000 food-insecure people across the country and to help keep the United Nations Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) in the air.
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The United Nations World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.
