The UN World Food Programme (WFP) in Liberia says it has over the weekend begun transporting huge quantities of food commodities to Zwedru, Grand Gedeh County,
WFP says this in readiness for the COVID-19 Household Food Support Programme (COHFSP) distribution in the southeast.
Taking advantage of the relative improvement in road conditions due to the emerging dry season, the WFP disclosed that it has dispatched a convoy of 8 large logistical trucks conveying 421 metric tons of food commodities.
The huge consignment is the first batch of 5,282 metric tons of food items intended for distribution in 5 southeast counties, including Grand Gedeh, River Gee, Maryland, Grand Kru, and Sinoe.
WFP’s Logistics Assistant, Lysander Martin, speaking via mobile phone from Toe Town, Grand Gedeh, early las Monday morning was upbeat about the trip to Zwedru.
“We have encountered a lot of obstacles due to a bad, almost impassable road situation. However, we are now in Toe Town and hope to touch ground in Zwedru before dark today, God willing.”
Despite the controversy surrounding the COVID-19 food stimulus package and claims by the Liberia Institute of Statistics and Geo Information Service (LIGIS) that the UN World Food Program (WFP) was responsible for the limited scale of the distribution, the WFP has remained silent on the issue.
WFP, which is in direct control of the US$25 million food package funded by the Liberian government, is said to have all the statistical assessment on the vulnerable household to benefit but LIGIS director, Professor Francis Wreh said the ball was in its court.
Before his transfer, former Commerce Minister Wilson Tarpeh informed the media that only four of the 17 districts in Montserrado County has been served the COVID-19 food stimulus package and that it was the WFP that was managing the millions set aside for thefood distribution.
Meanwhile, WFP’s Logistics Associate, John Clarke, has confirmed that more food truck convoys will shortly depart the Freeport of Monrovia for the southeast through Zwedru to augment initial arrivals.
He said WFP is scaling up food delivery to the counties now that the roads are becoming pliable.
“Additionally, we are closed to identifying a sea transport option to convey more commodities via the ports of Greenville and Harper,” he stressed.
WFP, together with the Steering Committee and all partners involved, is working tirelessly to ensure that food reaches those most in need across Liberia in the coming month.
Food distributions are currently ongoing in Todee district targeting over 19,600 households in 36 communities in 8 clans, and distributions will begin shortly in Margibi and Nimba Counties.