Pamphlets outlining the criteria for aid to be provided by the World Food Program (WFP) were distributed in Loikaw in Karenni (Kayah) State during the first week of May, according to local residents.
In the past, the WFP mainly collected names, addresses and household lists for aid distribution, but the agency has begun to distribute more effectively based on criteria, Loikaw residents said.
“Everyone wants rice. In hard time like this, there is no one who does not want rice. We’ll take it if they give it, but we can’t take it if they don’t give it,” said a Loikaw resident.
There are two criteria, and if one of them is met, the applicant can fill out and submit an application to receive food from WFP.
The first criterion states that a household with no regular income or a household with more than four family members with a regular income of less than MMK 120,000 is eligible. The second criterion states that households with disabilities, households with pregnant mothers or nursing mothers with a child under six months of age, households in which the breadwinner is a woman or a child, households with little or no economic assets, or households in which only elderly persons or children live are eligible for assistance.
The WFP pamphlets also state that more priority will be given to displaced families.
“Many displaced families have not been distributed. The had hasn’t covered all wards. I haven’t received it for a long time. I am not sure how are they distributing the aid,” a Loikaw resident told Kantarawaddy Times.
Some displaced families have taken shelter in the homes of their relatives in downtown Loikaw.
The WFP does not consider households that have a regular income of more than MMK 120,000, households with their own business assets, households with more than two acres of cultivable land, households with commercial assets, households that do not have a regular income but are supported by other organizations, or households that are supported by family members working abroad to be eligible for assistance.
“I would be happy if those in real need received the assistance, but I wonder how they will find out if families meet their criteria. There may be families who are in real need but don’t meet the criteria,” said another resident.
WFP Country Director Stephen Anderson told the Kantarawaddy Times that the organization is gradually working to shift aid distribution from an all-inclusive model to one that ensures aid reaches those who need it most.
Previously, the WFP distributed rice, oil, salt, beans and non-food items to IDPs in downtown Loikaw.
Sent by Kantarawaddy Times.