Wednesday, July 17, 2013
The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP)
and the European Commission Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection
(ECHO) have launched a cash distribution programme for refugees in
Ethiopia's Sheddar refugee camp, the WFP announced Monday (July 15th).
More than 12,000 refugees are receiving a cash allocation of 100
Ethiopian birr ($5.33) each in addition to a monthly ration of 13.9
kilogrammes of foodstuffs. The pilot programme will be expanded to reach
another 13,000 refugees in the area in October and will last through
December.
"Our main aim is to find the best way to meet refugee needs," said
Johan Heffinck of ECHO Ethiopia. "Providing cash directly to people can
be more effective, as well as empowering, for the refugees, since it
allows them to decide for themselves what their families need most."
Sheddar camp, located in Jijiga, capital of Ethiopia's Somali
regional state, is home to 12,308 registered refugees, according to the
UN High Commissioner for Refugees.