Cameroon: US government aid to crisis-hit regions arrive Douala airport

By David Atangana.

About eleven thousand tons of food donated by the government of the United States of America to combat food insecurity in Cameroon have arrived at the Douala International Airport.

The food commodities were received on June 8, 2023, by officials of the UN World Food Program (WFP) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Reports say the commodities will be distributed to populations living in the regions most affected by food insecurity in Cameroon, including those affected by the crises in the Far North, North West, and South West Regions, and refugees from the Central African Republic in the East Region.

“The United States Government through USAID, and its partner, WFP, made this donation to help combat food insecurity in Cameroon and the Central African Republic. This rice donation will help Cameroon meet the food and nutritional needs of refugees, internally displaced persons, and host communities living in the most vulnerable regions,” reads a statement from the US embassy in Yaounde.

Speaking during the reception, Philippe Accilien, representing USAID said, “This food donation, in collaboration with the government of Cameroon, will help the country meet the urgent food and nutritional security needs of the population, especially to the more than 2.3 million people who, according to the results of the Harmonized Framework, would be acutely food insecure between June and August 2023.”

According to Wanja Kaaria, World Food Program director for Cameroon “The World Food Programme appreciates this contribution from the United States of America, and the strong partnership with the Cameroonian Government, with whom WFP will be able to reach the most vulnerable people in the six regions most affected by food insecurity (Far North, North, Adamaoua, East, North-West and South-West).”

The U.S. government, it should be noted, is a key provider of humanitarian assistance to Cameroon through activities funded by USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance and the State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration.