The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is once again in the news as Nigerians raise questions about possible ongoing disbursement of funds and food items. There are circulating claims that many beneficiaries have started receiving N50,000 under the World Food Programme initiative, along with items of food.
These claims are yet to be confirmed by either the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation or the United Nations office in Nigeria.
Recall that the World Food Programme was announced back in 2023 by the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation to fight hunger in Nigeria with a $2.5 billion investment.
The WFP pledged to support President Bola Tinubu’s Zero Hunger Programme as part of efforts to address food insecurity in the country. At the time, the Minister for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Betta Edu, who is now suspended, emphasised that this initiative would help millions of vulnerable Nigerians.
The World Food Programme had disclosed that 2.1 million Nigerians have already been captured as beneficiaries of the programme and said it hopes to expand further, working with the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs.
The WFP explained that part of its plan is to support local food hubs by purchasing food locally and providing both cash transfers and food assistance. “These are very impressive,” the statement said during the launch.
Dr. Betta Edu had previously stated that there are over 133 million Nigerians affected by multidimensional poverty. She stressed that WFP’s intervention of $2.5 billion over five years “will go a long way to address some of the biggest challenges the country is facing, which is hunger.”
She also revealed that part of the plan was to create 774 humanitarian hubs, one in every local government area, to help distribute aid more effectively.
Attached below is circulating screenshot of disbursement SMS claims:
