The UN is providing emergency food to one million people in Ukraine, it said Wednesday, though it warned many more were going hungry, with adults skipping meals so children can eat.
One month after Russia invaded Ukraine, the Rome-based World Food Program (WFP) said it has managed, despite security issues, to “deliver food supplies to the most vulnerable people across the country.”
That included getting 330,000 loaves of freshly baked bread to families in the city of Kharkiv, and supplies into the conflict areas of Sumy and Kharkiv through two interagency humanitarian convoys.
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More convoys carrying food were expected to arrive in Ukraine in upcoming days, said the UN agency.
“Just one month ago, we had no presence on the ground, no staff, no network of suppliers or partners.”
“To build an operation from the ground up and get food to one million people seemed a monumental challenge,” Jakob Kern, WFP’s emergency coordinator for Ukraine, said in a statement.
But he added: “Now that the structures are in place, we need the funding to keep delivering assistance, and to help three million people in need.”
More than 6.5 million people are displaced inside Ukraine and food is one of the top three concerns for people, with an estimated 45 percent of the population worried about finding enough to eat, the UN agency said.
“One person in five now reports having to reduce the size and number of their meals while adults skip meals so their children can eat,” it said.
The agency said it needed $590 million (530 million euros) to assist 3.1 million people in need in Ukraine.
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