TEHRAN – The World Food Program (WFP) has released a report detailing its activities in Iran through December 2024.
In December, WFP food assistance reached 33,215 beneficiaries, including Afghan and Iraqi refugees and Iranian teachers. Refugees are supported with a staple food basket containing enriched flour (12 kg per person per month) and vegetable oil (810 ml per person per month).
In addition to this in-kind food assistance, WFP provides monthly cash assistance to 7,370 refugee families in Afghanistan and Iraq. In December, households headed by male refugees received 2.5 million Iranian rials (IRR) per person (US$4.6 according to UN-operated rates).
Households headed by refugee women received slightly higher monthly cash allocations, amounting to 3 million rupees (US$5.5) per person, as they had limited access to work opportunities, leading to increased food insecurity.
With the winter food shortage season approaching, WFP has doubled cash assistance to all beneficiaries in the December 2024 settlement, authorized by the Center for Alien and Foreign Immigration Affairs (CAFIA) at the Ministry of Interior. This additional allocation was for safety purposes. Ensure food security during agricultural off-season and strengthen the purchasing power of refugees with limited income opportunities.
The winter supplement, which corresponds to the standard cash entitlement for December, was provided to both male and female heads of household.
In December, 9,252 refugee school children, including teachers, received a daily school snack consisting of milk, date bars, and fortified biscuits.
WFP Iran will provide 52 WFP beneficiaries with celiac disease an additional R7.7 million (US$14.27) per person in cash for gluten-free meal replacements by December 2024 This helped alleviate the financial burden associated with their gluten-free dietary needs. Their right to a normal meal.
To support income generation and resilience for 312 refugees (51% women and 49% men), in December WFP launched 20 livelihood activities in 17 settlements, including welding, tailoring, baking and agriculture. We continued to provide operational support.
Following WFP’s Disability Inclusion Work Plan 2023, WFP will implement a pilot initiative in two settlements, Shahid Naseri in Markazi province and Mohajerin in Semnan province, to reach 1.5 million refugees with disabilities per month across nine settlements. Provided cash replenishment of Rupees (270 USD). This is the maximum amount for normal rights.
In December, WFP expanded its response by supporting 10 more refugees since November, bringing the total to 271. This follows the expansion of the program in October, which covers Kerman, Lorestan, West Azarbaijan, Fars, Khuzestan, Markazi, and Semnan provinces.
WFP Iran’s revised budget for the Interim National Strategic Plan (ICSP) was approved in September, leading to adjustments to the Needs-Based Plan (NBP). Due to developments in the situation, including the cancellation of two new refugee settlements planned to house displaced people from Afghanistan, the revised version includes the following changes:
** The total number of planned beneficiaries has been reduced from 52,000 to 35,000.
** The ICSP period has been extended by two years to cover April 2023 to December 2027, aligning with the UN Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (SDCF) period.
To account for these adjustments and the extended planning schedule, the total ICSP budget increased by $5.8 million to $42.82 million.
WFP decides to support Iran by accepting refugees
Maysa al-Ghrhibawi, the new World Food Program (WFP) director for Iran, announced the organization’s commitment to support Iran as one of the largest refugee-hosting countries.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ website, Al-Ghrhibawi highlighted the challenges facing WFP in the region and called for cooperation and exchanges with Iran and to advance WFP’s work and responsibilities in the region. I asked them to strengthen it.
The official made the remarks during a meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Sunday, January 12, while presenting his credentials and explaining the humanitarian organization’s plans and activities in food security.
Mr. Araguchi stressed the importance of promoting cooperation, stating, “Regional and international cooperation is needed to address humanitarian crises, including the refugee and migrant crises in West Asia.”
MT/MG