“Burning scrap paper to bake bread”... WFP to cut food aid for 500,000 people in Gaza

[Financial News] The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) will sharply reduce food aid to the Gaza Strip in Palestine because of funding shortages.
Reuters and the BBC reported on the 18th (local time) that WFP said the number of people receiving monthly food assistance in Gaza is expected to fall by 500,000, from 1.6 million to 1.1 million. As a result, meals provided at communal kitchens will drop from 250,000 to 150,000 a day. The number of flour and food ration boxes WFP distributes to Gaza residents each month will also fall from 1.1 million to 600,000.
BBC reported that Sean Hughes, WFP’s director in Palestine, said the measure was “for financial reasons,” and “not because the need for assistance has decreased or because we have been unable to secure the relevant supplies.” According to the BBC, this year’s budget for WFP’s assistance to Palestine has fallen to less than half of last year’s level.
WFP needs approximately $450 million (about 599 billion won) to maintain its core operations over the next six months.
The aid cut is being implemented ahead of winter, as the crisis in the Gaza Strip continues. According to WFP, 1.4 million people—about two-thirds of Gaza’s population—are reportedly facing food insecurity at or above the “crisis” level.
After visiting Gaza on the 18th, WFP Acting Executive Director Carl Skau described the situation there as “horrific,” saying that “life has come to a standstill.”
The BBC reported that although grocery markets have plenty of goods, more than 80% of residents are unemployed, leaving most of them dependent on aid.
Israel continues to control the entry of goods into the Gaza Strip even after the ceasefire agreement with Hamas, the Palestinian militant group.
In particular, the Israeli government has classified cooking gas as a “dual-use” item that could be diverted for military purposes. As a result, most displaced families reportedly cannot even obtain fuel to heat their food.
Even the firewood they can find is expensive. As a result, children are reportedly making bread using cardboard boxes or plastic they have picked up from the streets.
However, WFP will continue supporting bakeries, which meet about one-third of Gaza’s demand for bread, as well as providing nutrition assistance to around 300,000 women and children and nutritious snacks to around 200,000 children.
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