The European Union – EU has come to the aid of the vulnerable families in urban areas most affected by the impact of covid 19 by making a crucial donation.
In a statement made available to Zambian Business Times-ZBT, The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) welcomes a EUR 5 million contribution from the European Union (EU) that will help provide cash assistance to 655,000 food insecure people in urban areas of Zambia.
WFP has been reaching poor families in parts of Lusaka and Kafue with relatively high infection rates. The EU funding will enable it to extend its assistance to two more cities, Livingstone and Kitwe, with a view to reaching 655,000 people overall. Each beneficiary family will receive ZMK400 (EUR 18.5) a month for six months to help cover their food needs.
WFP’s Country Director for Zambia Jennifer Bitonde, said in the statement that the pandemic has really affected the lives of people who make ends meet from daily labor and daily trading.
“COVID-19 has disrupted the ability of thousands of poor city families traditionally reliant on daily labor and informal trading to earn a living. With food prices on the rise, the constant struggle to meet basic needs is now much tougher – and becoming more so”, she said.
Furthermore she expressed gratitude to the European Union for their donation as it has come at a time where the poor in urban households are facing a challenging time.
“WFP is grateful to the European Union for coming to the aid of poor urban households during this challenging time. This contribution is very timely, as many Zambians are emerging from a two-year drought that has severely undermined national food security”, she said.
WFP is prioritizing those who depend on the informal sector as well as the elderly, people living with disabilities and the chronically ill, who cannot meet their food needs due to rising prices and income losses.
Talk about light at the end of the tunnel. The people hit the most by the pandemic are the poor, as they do not have cope with COVID-19. The European Union has come to the aid of the vulnerable in urban families by making a crucial donation.
In a statement made available to Zambian Business Times-ZBT, The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) welcomes a EUR 5 million contribution from the European Union (EU) that will help provide cash assistance to 655,000 food insecure people in urban areas of Zambia.
WFP has been reaching poor families in parts of Lusaka and Kafue with relatively high infection rates. The EU funding will enable it to extend its assistance to two more cities, Livingstone and Kitwe, with a view to reaching 655,000 people overall. Each beneficiary family will receive ZMW 400 (EUR 18.5) a month for six months to help cover their food needs.
WFP’s Representative in Zambia Jennifer Bitonde, said in the statement that the pandemic has really affected the lives of people who make ends meet from daily labor and daily trading.
“COVID-19 has disrupted the ability of thousands of poor city families traditionally reliant on daily labor and informal trading to earn a living. With food prices on the rise, the constant struggle to meet basic needs is now much tougher – and becoming more so”, she said.
Furthermore she expressed gratitude to the European Union for their donation as it has come at a time where the poor in urban households are facing a challenging time.
“WFP is grateful to the European Union for coming to the aid of poor urban households during this challenging time. This contribution is very timely, as many Zambians are emerging from a two-year drought that has severely undermined national food security”, she said.
WFP is prioritizing those who depend on the informal sector as well as the elderly, people living with disabilities and the chronically ill, who cannot meet their food needs due to rising prices and income losses.
