WFP suspends food aid to Tigray region over reported thefts

The UN World Food Programme (WFP has paused food distribution in Ethiopia’s war-ravaged Tigray region in response to reports that significant amounts of aid were being diverted, the agency said.

The announcement follows a similar one by the US Agency for International Development, which said on Wednesday it had discovered that food intended for millions of needy people in Tigray was being diverted and sold.

Neither organisation gave details of the source of the reports and the WFP did not say who was responsible for the diversions or when they had taken place.

But it said late on Wednesday it was strongly reiterating to our cooperating partners that they monitor and report any illicit activities, and that they are enforcing the agreed controls.

Calls to reconsider suspension

Tigray’s interim regional government head Getachew Reda urged humanitarian agencies to reconsider suspending aid, saying in a statement that the moves would hurt their people who are facing grave challenges.

He said he had set up a task force to investigate, calling the reported theft a crime against children, the elderly and the disabled.

A spokesperson for Ethiopia’s federal government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A two-year war that erupted in November 2020 between the federal government and forces led by the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, which dominates the northern region, killed tens of thousands of people, created famine-like conditions for hundreds of thousands and displaced millions.

Ethiopia’s government and Tigray forces agreed to end hostilities in November, which has allowed additional aid to reach the region and for some services to be restored.