The World Food Programme (WFP) has welcomed the first-ever delivery of food assistance to the landlocked Central African Republic using barges along the Ubangui River from neighbouring Republic of Congo.

It was noted that the new supply route from Brazzaville to Bangui was an alternative and complementary supply line that will make life-saving food assistance available more quickly in the country.

Development Diaries observed that the shipment received included pulses and vegetable oil and it was the first of several dispatches expected from the route. The food commodities received were part of a donation from the United States, WFP’s biggest donor in the Central African Republic.

The Country Director at WFP, Samir Wanmali, said, ‘The ability to use the Ubangui River during the rainy season allows WFP to have an additional route from July to December every year which is faster, does not require military escorts, and can transport a large quantity of vital food supplies.

‘The donations from the people of the United States form the bedrock of WFP operations in the Central African Republic. We are grateful to the US Government and USAID for supporting the most vulnerable people in the country’.

The United States Ambassador to the Central African Republic, Lucy Tamlyn, added, ‘The United States is committed to providing life-saving humanitarian aid to Central Africans in need. I am pleased to see this new supply route opened, and I thank my colleagues at the US Embassy in Brazzaville and our partners at WFP for making the logistics for this critical delivery possible’.

It was noted that humanitarian needs were increasing in the Central African Republic as existing vulnerabilities of crisis-affected populations have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, with a significant impact on food and nutrition security.

Source: World Food Programme

Photo source: United Nations Photo