Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Le pays Tchad
Published on 2024-03-13 10:18:33
On Tuesday, March 12, 2024, the World Food Programme (WFP) announced that it will suspend its aid to hundreds of thousands of refugees who have arrived from Sudan to Chad in April “due to financial constraints”. The UN agency is calling for donations to prevent “a total catastrophe.”
“Due to financial constraints, WFP assistance for 1.2 million Sudanese refugees and those affected by the crisis, including the new refugees from Sudan, will be suspended in April,” warned the World Food Programme in a statement.
This warning comes as, according to WFP, thousands of Sudanese refugees continue to cross the border from Darfur, and with the approaching rainy season, it will make road access to humanitarian deliveries in the camps in Eastern Chad and towards Darfur impractical.
“We are in a race against time. The small window for pre-positioning food will close quickly and our resources are dwindling in this dramatic period. We have already reduced our operations to proportions that would have been unthinkable just a few years ago, plunging hungry people into a much more critical situation,” said Pierre Honnorat, WFP Representative and Country Director in Chad.
For months, the agency notes, “the majority of refugees from Cameroon, the Central African Republic, and Nigeria have not received any assistance due to lack of funds.” And, “the reduction in rations is fueling competition among refugees, returnees, and host communities for the already limited resources, thus sowing the seeds of tension and instability.”
“In April, WFP will be forced to cut off all assistance to new waves of Sudanese refugees. The overflow of the Sudanese crisis is overwhelming the humanitarian response in Chad, already underfunded and overburdened. We need donors to prevent the situation from becoming a total catastrophe,” Pierre Honnorat warned.
To ensure continuous support for those affected by the crisis in Chad over the next six months, the World Food Programme urgently needs $242 million.
Read the original article(French) on Le Pays Tchad
