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WFP to revive Thriposha, scales up emergency aid
View(s):By Kapila Bandara
Leading UN humanitarian agency, the World Food Programme, has responded quickly to Sri Lanka’s food and nutrition emergency and is working to revive the Thriposha supplement for children below 5 years and pregnant and lactating women, as well as the school meals programme.
The WFP is scaling up its programme to include an additional 3 million most at risk and estimates that US$ 60 million (Rs 21.6 billion) will be needed up to December.
On June 16, the WFP began handing out food vouchers to pregnant women in underserved areas of Colombo starting with the Modara Maternal Care Clinic.
The WFP is also charting a course for more durable solutions for the long-term.
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| What a plight: Donate a meal for Sri Lankans for 80 US cents Donors have been invited to contribute to emergency food assistance through the World Food Programme at ‘Share the Meal’ app online. This is the official app of the WFP and the Deputy Regional Director Anthea Webb said she contributes regularly to keep track of the donations. A donor can feed a child for one day for just 80 US cents. The inset shows Ms. Webb handing out a food voucher to a pregnant woman at the Modara Maternal Care Clinic. Please see story below |
The WFP’s Asia Pacific Deputy Regional Director Anthea Webb told the Sunday Times: “Our plan for the emergency operation, which will continue until the end of the year, is to reach 3 million people. This includes more vouchers for pregnant women and other vulnerable people, especially those who can’t afford food at the moment.
“We will try to get the Thriposha programme up and running again and we expect to reach about 1 million people. We are purchasing the commodities right now and we will be reactivating the school meals programme.’’
Thriposha production was shut down by the Podu Jana Peramuna Government in November 2021 and school meals were also halted.
“Fortified rice for school meals would be imported. At the moment, I don’t think it is available in Sri Lanka,’’Ms. Webb said.
Fortified food has been found to help achieve drastic reductions in iodine deficiency disorders including anaemia; neural tube defects; iron deficiency anaemia and vitamin A deficiency.
On June 16 at the Modara clinic, the WFP gave out 152 vouchers. A total of 419 vouchers were distributed across three clinics in Colombo North, including Modara.
Ms Webb said roughly a quarter of all primary school age children rely on the school meal programme. “It had stalled a little bit because of the lack of funding. We will be providing rice and potentially some cash so that the caterers that prepare school meals are able to start again.
“Since we know that children are probably not getting as nutritious meals as they would normally get at home, the addition of the fortified rice means they will have a little more vitamins and minerals like iron.’’
Referring to the vouchers worth Rs 15,000 each, Ms Webb said it is monthly assistance.
“It was calculated based on research we have about the average cost of a minimum nutritious food basket for a family of four. And the Rs 15,000 is about half the cost. Since we know that food inflation has gone up by more than 50%, this is to cover the additional cost, just as a first step, while we could get those other programmes up and running.
“These are essentially gift vouchers. The pregnant women can take them to the supermarket and buy what they need.’’
The WFP this week received A$ 22 million (US$ 15m) from Australia. In May, Japan offered US$ 1.5 million to provide three months’ supplies, including fortified rice, dhal and oil, for about 15,000 people and 380,000 school children.
Ms Webb said the funding would be used for all three activities — Thriposha, school meals, and emergency vouchers. “We will need to deploy it carefully, so that the timing works.’’
Asked about the US$ 60m funding estimate compared with the UN’s US$ 47.2m appeal, Ms Webb explained that the UN had initially estimated the needs of 1.7m people from June to September.
“That included food, fertiliser and medicines. But, when we looked at the problem that we are facing, we estimated that actually far more people were going to need assistance for longer. So, the US$ 60m includes from now to December and 3 million people. There is some overlap with the UN’s amount and we go beyond that both in terms of the number of people and the number of months of assistance.
“One reason we looked further along is because we also are concerned that the last Maha harvest was about 50% of what would normally be expected. We are concerned that the Yala [from May to end August] crop will possibly be worse. We don’t think the food situation in the country will be better by September.’’
Ms Webb said that so far, 30% of the US$ 60m funding has been received.
“This is extraordinary and really, really encouraging. This allows us to get moving and to be already purchasing and diverting ships on the high seas towards Sri Lanka. We can get those immediate measures in place, while we work on making sure that the schools are ready to restart, and the school meals, and the Thriposha factory are ready to get back into operation.’’
Ms Webb said there is not a moment to lose in this emergency.
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