The U.S. Government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development, recently contributed $20 million to support the provision of food to approximately 1.2 million temporary displaced persons of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, 75,000 earthquake-affected individuals, and 153,500 malnourished women and children in Pakistan.

 

This new contribution by the United States will be managed by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP), which will transform approximately 40,000 metric tons of wheat provided by the Government of Pakistan into fortified wheat flour.  In addition, the WFP will purchase and distribute more than 9,000 tons of specialized food commodities to these groups.

 

“The U.S. Government is helping Pakistan to improve access to safe and nutritious food for women, men, and children who are vulnerable to malnutrition,” USAID Mission Director John Groarke said.  “The United States has a longstanding commitment to working with Pakistan to provide humanitarian assistance and support human development.”

 

USAID’s $20 million donation is a contribution to the Twinning Program, a partnership among the Government of Pakistan, the WFP, and the international donor community.  Through the Twinning Program, wheat donated by the Government of Pakistan is transformed into fortified wheat flour and distributed to vulnerable displaced populations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province and the Federally Administered Tribal Areas.  Donor funds are used to cover the costs of milling, fortification, storage, transportation, and distribution of the wheat flour.  USAID is the largest international donor to the Twinning Program and with this latest contribution has now reached $75 million in total support to the program since 2013.