January 28, 2016

Myanmar is still the third-most malnourished country in Southeast Asia

The United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP) in Myanmar is facing a funding shortfall of $51 million to meet all the needs till the end of 2016. The organisation, which has a 250-strong staff in the country, says it provided food and cash assistance to 1.2 million people in 2015. This includes emergency food assistance to half a million victims of disasters and conflict. 

Myanmar Now chief correspondent Thin Lei Win spoke to Dom Scalpelli, WFP country director in Myanmar, about what the shortfall means, why Myanmar is still food insecure, and what eradicating hunger and malnutrition would mean to the country.

Question: How concerned are you about the funding shortfall? Or is this part of a long-standing problem?

Answer: The funding shortfalls are a common part of our business, unfortunately. It’s like running a fire department without having the money for the trucks or the petrol in the trucks. Imagine, each time there’s a fire, you need to quickly run around the city and ask for money. (Courtesy of Mizzima)

No comments:

Post a Comment