The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) says a funding shortfall has forced it to cut by one-half food rations for more than 50,000 people in Malawi at the country's only refugee camp. The food cuts come at a time when refugees at the Dzaleka camp, who are mainly from the Great Lakes region, are already facing deteriorating food security.
Dzaleka camp, which was originally established to accommodate up to 12,000 refugees, is home to more than 50,600 refugees mainly from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi and Rwanda, which represent the total refugee population in Malawi.
The refugees receive monthly WFP cash assistance at the camp, where they face several challenges, including insufficient shelter and inadequate health, water, and sanitation services. They have limited access to alternative sources of livelihood and largely depend on WFP food assistance.
The assistance provided was designed to meet the minimum recommended energy needs of 2,100 kilocalories. However, due to chronic funding shortfalls, the UN agency was providing reduced rations since 2020. With severe funding challenges persisting, WFP says it has no choice but to reduce assistance further, potentially leaving thousands of refugees struggling to meet their nutritional needs.
Starting this month, refugees' cash allowance will be reduced from $8.50 per person each month to $5.90. This amount is barely enough to cover an individual’s monthly food requirements. The cuts come at a time when hunger in Malawi is worsening.
WFP is appealing for US$6.3 million to reinstate the food rations to current levels (75 percent) until June 2024.
"We are worried that the reduction in food rations will exacerbate an already dire food security situation and increase hardships among refugees residing in Dzaleka camp," said Simon Denhere, the acting Country Director of WFP in Malawi.
"These cuts will particularly affect the most vulnerable, including malnourished children, pregnant and breastfeeding women, and people with underlying health conditions."
According to the UN agency, the overall state of food security and nutrition has been steadily deteriorating, primarily due to soaring food prices, a surge in the number of refugees entering the country, and the return of refugees to the camp under the Government's forced encampment policy.
The latest food security assessments, conducted in January, found that nine out of every ten refugees surveyed in the camp – an equivalent of 45,000 people - are food insecure and need urgent assistance. Over two decades, these refugees fled political instability and social unrest in the Great Lakes region.
The severe cuts come at a time, when the Malawi government continues to forcibly detain and relocate refugees who stay outside Dzaleka camp. Malawian officials said this month more than 2,000 of the targeted 8,000 refugees have been relocated to the camp since June.
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and rights groups, including Human Rights Watch (HRW), have requested that the government halt the detentions and forced relocations after refugees protested of the dehumanizing manner in which they were being evicted from their homes and businesses, without regard for their basic human rights.
According to UNHCR, some 8,000 refugees and asylum-seekers are estimated to have been living in Malawi’s rural and urban areas for extended periods of time. Most of them are well integrated into the local community. They have become self-reliant while contributing to the local economy through running small-scale businesses and engaging in other entrepreneurial activities.
Malawi is the latest country to be affected by WFP shortfalls. The world’s largest humanitarian organization has been hit with deep funding shortages this year, forcing it to slash food aid to millions of vulnerable people.
Among the countries and situations most affected by these cuts are Haiti, Bangladesh (Rohingya refugees), Sahel, Somalia, Syria, Jordan, Afghanistan, the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Nigeria, and Yemen. However, these persistent funding shortfalls have also led to ration cuts for Congolese refugees in Burundi or refugees hosted in Chad.
The World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization. The UN agency, awarded the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize, is saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to support people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change. WFP works in over 120 countries and territories. For millions of people worldwide, WFP assistance can make the difference between life and death.
Further information
Full text: Funding crunch forces WFP to halve food rations for refugees amidst worsening hunger in Malawi, WFP press release, published July 24, 2023
https://www.wfp.org/news/funding-crunch-forces-wfp-halve-food-rations-refugees-amidst-worsening-hunger-malawi