How WFP is responding to the COVID-19 crisis in Gaza
The World Food Programme steps up its assistance in Palestine in response to the COVID-19 crisis and its damaging impact on an already constrained economy
Palestine — especially Gaza — is no stranger to emergencies and crises, prior to the outbreak of COVID-19, nearly one out of three people — that’s 1.7 million people — could not afford nutritious food. Food insecurity is particularly high among women especially in Gaza affecting more than half of households headed by women.
1. COVID-19 Emergency Response Assistance
In addition to more than 220,000 people regularly receiving WFP cash assistance in Gaza, WFP has extended assistance to 240 additional families (794 people) whose livelihoods were substantially affected by the coronavirus emergency.
Maher Saada, 56, his wife Rudayna and their nine sons and daughters are among those families.
“I try to postpone my anxiety of what will happen after July when assistance stops.”
Prior to COVID-19, the family relied entirely on the income of their eldest, Obayda, a 26-year-old taxi driver. Obayda has to pay a fixed fee to the taxi owner, and the remaining income was hardly sufficient to meet the basic needs of the family . Moreover, the family is overwhelmed with accumulated debts of around US$7000 due to a failed business attempt by the father back in 2013. Obayda had to stop working due to the restricted movement during the COVID-19 pandemic, which meant the family was left wtih zero income.
WFP’s emergency food assistance provides US$10.3 per family member per month.
“The food voucher was godsent! I had sleepless nights wondering how I will be able to feed my kids during this crisis,” Rudayna says.
2. Supporting local food producers
The agricultural sector in Gaza, already ailing due to restrictive policies and lack of sector wide strategy, was hit hard by the COVID-19 crisis, where movement restrictions left farmers and the whole value chain suffering.
In response, WFP decided to support this sector by adding a monthly top-up of US$5 per family member to families already receiving food vouchers to allow them to buy more local produce such as fresh vegetables and fruits and dairy products and serials.
Ghada Abu Daqen, 25, her husband Salama and their three children have been receiving WFP food voucher since 2018. Prior to the COVID — 19 crisis, Salama was the breadwinner of the family, albeit having insufficient working days per month. During the pandemic, Salama was unable to work. This additional assistance can slightly substitute the lack of the occasional income that some of the assisted families would gain under normal circumstances.
“When we received the notification about the extra amount for the fresh vegetables, I was very happy,” Ghada says. “I have always wanted to bring my kids some fresh food, but I was only able to use my voucher for the basic items like the wheat flour and the pulses.”
3. Food assistance for students
In Gaza, WFP provides food vouchers to 34 rehabilitation institutions that provide services to around 3200 individuals that are either People with Disabilities, orphans, elderly, juveniles, or abused women across the Gaza Strip. This food assistance is utilized by the institutions to prepare daily meals for their attendees.
In the wake of the COVID-19 crisis, 26 of these institutions had to stop their services as a precautionary measure, which deprived the institutions’ 2740 attendees from the meals that they usually receive during their time in the institution.
WFP continues to provide food assistance through cash transfer, Each existing student was issued a food voucher to purchase food items of their choice from the network of WFP contracted shops across the Gaza Strip.
Shams,15, and Imad Abu Ryala, 13, are two siblings with disability and are enrolled at the Palestinian Association for Rehabilitation of PwDs.
Shams and Imad’s education and rehabilitation in the center has enhanced their prognosis as well as their physical health through nutritious meals prepared for them in the institution from the food provided by WFP.
Although their institution is not operating due to the COVID-19 crisis, Shams and Imad try to carry on with their studies at home by practicing reading and writing, while WFP’s food voucher assistance secures their essential nutritional needs.
“I was very happy to see my name printed on the card,” Imad says while happily holding his food voucher and reading his name on it. Their father works as a fisherman and due to imposed restrictions on fishing activities and the fishing area in the sea, he is hardly able to make ends meet and provide for his family of 11.
“The institution takes a big burden off of my shoulder with the kids’ rehabilitation and nutrition, and the continuation of their food assistance was crucial help to the whole family”.
Shams, Imad and all the students of interrupted institutions will each receive US$10 per, month for three months between April and June 2020.
4. Social Distancing and Hygiene practices
Since day one of the COVID-19 crisis, WFP deployed measures to ensure the safety of beneficiaries and staff, by applying the crucial practices to prevent the spread of the virus.
For example, WFP directed all contracted shops across the Gaza Strip provide hand sanitizers and gloves for people redeeming their food vouchers. Moreover, participants were advised through SMS to use hand sanitizers and gloves while at the shops.
WFP has also changed the frequency of the food voucher top-ups, from Weekly to Bi-Weekly as to reduce the number of the participants’ trips to the shop and prevent jamming at the shops.
In collaboration with sister agancies, WFP has distributed posters and brochures to all the shops on the best hygiene practices.
The precautionary measures were also introduced at food distribution sites that usually witness large crowds gathering to receive their in-kind food rations. WFP divided the participants across more distribution days to significantly reduce the number of participants that are present at the warehouse each day of the distribution.
The warehouses were remodeled to ensure social distancing standards and were divided into stations, such as the sanitization station,the identity verification station, and the ration distribution station. WFP also installed isolated units throughout the stations where there is a direct interaction between the staff and the participants.
