Kunene, Ohangwena to benefit from food programme

OPUWO - More than 2 000 drought-stricken families in the Kunene and Ohangwena regions will benefit from the World Food Programme (WFP) food voucher programme worth over N$7.2 million donated by the Japanese government.

The programme is set to be launched in July in these regions, where it is meant to benefit people who are struggling to feed themselves due to the devastating drought that affected those parts of the country severely over the past five consecutive years, and the socio-economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.

WFP head of programmes Elvis Gonza Odeke said in a recent interview that the WFP is working closely with the Kunene and Ohangwena Regional Councils to collectively devise mechanisms of strengthening food systems in the regions through the promotion of market-based stimuli as means of strengthening local economies, enhancing rural transformation and human capital development.

Odeke last week oversaw the donation of food packages worth N$1.7 million to 19 schools in the Kunene region through the school-feeding programme that he said will be followed by more aid from the Japanese government which will benefit drought-stricken communities.

He thus encouraged beneficiaries to purchase goods from local retailers and cuca shops within their respective communities, saying: “In this way, the money goes directly to local vendors, boosting them to expand and grow to better serve the needs of the community. In this regard, communities won’t have to travel long distances when in need of purchasing goods.”

Odeke further noted that the food voucher programme is meant to assist these communities for not more than three months, and that the WFP also plans to establish a soup kitchen to address the immediate needs of food for communities displaced to urban centres.