World Food Programme signs MoU with Government of Ukraine to provide half a million people with cash
LVIV – The UN World Food Programme yesterday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Social Policy of Ukraine to scale up cash transfers to half a million people across Ukraine.
The agreement with the Government will support people displaced by the war in Ukraine, and expand the assistance already provided to 170,000 people through cash.
"This partnership will expand our efforts to support the Social Protection system that is already in place in Ukraine,” said Samir Wanmali, WFP Deputy Emergency Coordinator
Since the beginning of April through May, WFP has transferred nearly US$11 million in local currency to more than 170,000 people In Vinnytsia, Ivano-Frankivsk, Kharkiv and other cities. Those eligible are receiving between US$75 and US$225 per month, depending on family size.
Cash allows people to buy the items and services that they consider most important. It is extremely useful to families with a variety of needs in a volatile environment, when they may be moving locations.
Every dollar spent by a family in Ukraine is directly injected into the local economy.
Since the war in Ukraine started, WFP has provided food assistance to 3.4 million internally displaced people across the country, including in hard-to-reach encircled or semi-encircled areas, and aims to reach 6 million people caught up in the world's fastest-growing humanitarian crisis. To date, 7.7 million people have been displaced within Ukraine and almost 6 million living as refugees in bordering or other European countries.
# # #
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.
Follow us on Twitter @wfp_media
