AFFAIRES | AFFAIRES 
APA -Addis Ababa(Ethiopia)
09 April 2025 | 10:58
Children having super plus porridge following the resumption of refugee food assistance in in Bokolmayo refugee camp, Somali region of Ethiopia.The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has begun rolling out food distributions to nearly 900,000 refugees in Ethiopia, following a full revamp of the safeguards and controls in its refugee operations. Families living in refugee camps across five regions, including new arrivals who have fled from Sudan, are receiving food parcels for the first time since WFP paused food distributions in June 2023, following reports of large-scale diversions.WFP’s operations have resumed in Somali, Gambella, Benishangul Gumuz, Oromia, SNNP and Afar regions, providing refugees with cereals, pulses, vegetable oil and salt. Some will receive part of their entitlement as cash assistance. The resumption of food distributions for refugees follows major reforms in all camps across the country, including: * All 24 warehouses in refugee camps are now exclusively managed by WFP; * Refugees will now be digitally enrolled for support through UNHCR’s Global Distribution Tracking Tool; * Bolstered feedback and reporting systems for refugees, including on-site helpdesks and an anonymous hotline; * Additional non-government organizations have been recruited and trained by WFP to manage food distributions; * New and detailed food collection procedures will ensure that refugees know they are receiving the right entitlements every time. * In parallel, WFP is making great progress to test and Resuming food assistance for refugees is vital. Latest hunger data shows that refugee food security has deteriorated in the past months, leading to increased malnutrition, heightened tensions around the camps and even unsafe journeys back across the border.
The government of Ethiopia Tuesday announced the launch of a new initiative dubbed “Ethio-Aid”, aiming to substitute the assistance being withheld by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
The announcement comes in the context of reduced international aid, particularly following the suspension of assistance from the Trump White House.
It is a national disaster response mechanism intended to soften the blow caused by the aid cut and address emergencies using domestically mobilised resources.
The Ethio-Aid program was presented during a parliamentary session on a new draft proclamation concerning disaster risk management. According to the draft, 3 percent of the national budget will be allocated annually to a dedicated disaster response fund.
Based on the current budget of 1.5 trillion birr, this equates to approximately 45 billion birr per year.
All residents—including individual citizens, public and private employees, institutions, and organisations—will be expected to contribute, voluntarily or mandated. The draft proclamation specifies that both governmental and non-governmental entities will be part of this national contribution effort.
The Ethiopian Disaster Risk Management Commission recently told legislators that the goal of Ethio-Aid is to enhance the country’s capacity to respond to natural disasters, conflict-related emergencies, and other crises.
In addition to addressing domestic needs, the initiative is also intended to support neighbouring countries during times of hardship.
In light of these developments, Ethio-Aid is positioned as a long-term strategy to strengthen self-reliance in emergency response. Officials from the Disaster Risk Management Commission indicated that the funds collected will be used to build a permanent, well-resourced disaster response institution.
MG/as/APA