Ouagadougou — The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) received EUR 7.2 million in funding from the European Union (EU) in 2022, which has helped WFP to supply over 750,000 people in Burkina Faso with life-saving food assistance as humanitarian needs have continued to rise due to insecurity, the impact of climate change, and rising food prices. The EU's funding, received through the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations department (ECHO), enabled WFP to provide vital food assistance to 45,000 internally displaced people (IDPs) lacking access to food between April and December 2022, and to about 705,000 vulnerable people across the country severely affected by food insecurity during the agricultural season from July to August.

"The 2022 lean season in Burkina Faso was the worst of the last decade and it further aggravated existing vulnerabilities of both displaced and local communities," said Miranda Sende, WFP Deputy Country Director in Burkina Faso. "The continued support from the European Union was essential to allow the most vulnerable populations access food."

Results of the March 2022 Cadre Harmonisé food security assessment indicated that overall, 3.5 million people were estimated to be acutely food insecure during the peak of the lean season (July to August). This was an unprecedented situation experienced at national, community and household level. During the 2022 lean season, WFP assisted a total of 1.2 million people including 440,000 with food commodities in areas where food was not available in markets, and around 832,000 with cash-based transfers in other areas.

"Without the cash I received I would not have been able to secure a 100 kg bag of maize to ensure meals for the kids. Earnings from the jobs and farming we do is not enough to support my family but thanks to the support we received from WFP we can cope with this hardship," said Harouna Ouedraogo, originally from Doffi (Dablo district) and now displaced in Kaya with his family.