WFP applauds donors, Pakistan government for rehabilit tion of IDPs

ISLAMABAD: The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) on Thursday hosted a commemoration ceremony to welcome the contribution of Euro 1.04 million from the government of Germany.
This contribution will allow the WFP to provide food assistance to the families displaced from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata).
In the past several years, Pakistan has made remarkable gains in becoming a staple food surplus country with sufficient national production to meet the needs of its population.
However, the food and nutrition situation in Pakistan remains a key concern and has become a matter of considerable focus with the government prioritising food security in its National Agenda for Change alongside the provision of social and productive safety nets for the most vulnerable populations.
The contribution by the German government will be utilised to twin with 7,000 tons of wheat provided by the government of Pakistan. This will enable the WFP to provide fortified wheat flour to half-a-million people (85,789 families) for a month.
“We are very concerned about the plight of the IDPs in Pakistan and hope that they are able to return to their homes soon,” H. E. Dr. Cyrill Nunn, the German Ambassador to Pakistan said.
“We understand that a need for a coordinated approach exists which means a strong coordination from the Government of Pakistan, strong division of labour from the donors, good coordination within the UN system and to use as intelligently as possible the available funding. We know that the situation in Fata will remain difficult but our focus on both short termand long term development will continue.”
He further said that Germany believes that SAFFRON has a key role in addressing the current challenges being faced in Fata; the prime responsibility for facilitating the return of the IDPs on a political level as well as ensuring that the funds from the Government of Pakistan for the uplifting of wheat and developing a strategic vision of the future of Fata and to look beyond the sheer rehabilitation of the IDPs. “Therefore, SAFFRON and WFP are and will remain key partners for Germany.”