Canada Contributes Nearly $5Mln In Funding For Food Aid In Gaza, Jordan - United Nations

The Canadian government has committed nearly $5 million in funding for the UN World Food Program (WFP) food assistance programs in the Gaza Strip and refugee sites in Jordan, the WFP said on Monday

UNITED NATIONS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd August, 2021) The Canadian government has committed nearly $5 million in funding for the UN World Food Program (WFP) food assistance programs in the Gaza Strip and refugee sites in Jordan, the WFP said on Monday.

"WFP had already been forced to stop... assistance to 21,000 vulnerable refugees in July due to lack of funds and was concerned that further cuts to another 110,000 refugees are unavoidable in September. However, the Canadian Government stepped in with emergency funding of $3.2 million to maintain this monthly assistance for another month," the UN agency said in a statement.

In addition, Canada contributed $1.7 million towards food aid programs in Gaza - still reeling from the hostilities between Hamas and Israel earlier this spring - which is expected to support more that 64,000 people for the next two months, the WFP said in a separate statement.

Canadian support comes amid increasing budget shortages at the WFP, according to the agency, which has been forced to cut aid to vulnerable populations in Jordanian refugee camps housing refugees displaced by the ongoing civil conflict in Syria.