The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has announced that it will pump in $5 million (FCFA 2.4 billion) of cash-based food assistance to the UN World Food Program (WFP) to address the immediate food needs of refugees from the Central African Republic (CAR) who have taken refuge in Cameroon.

In a statement sent to the Journal, the US Embassy in Cameroon said through this contribution, USAID is addressing acute food needs arising from the recent influx of over 86,000 refugees in Cameroon through the provision of 14,100 tons of locally-purchased food.

“With USAID support, WFP aims to reach 100,000 of the most vulnerable and food insecure refugees and host communities in Cameroon’s Adamawa and East regions over the next eight months. Vulnerable families are receiving complete food baskets of maize, pulses, vegetable oil and iodized salt to counter micronutrient deficiencies,” the statement read.

The US aid agency is also focusing on providing nutrient-rich and fortified supplementary foods to CAR refugee children as well as pregnant and lactating women to prevent and treat acute malnutrition. The influx of refugees into Cameroon has increased dramatically over the past few months following a worsening security situation in Central African Republic. On May 22, 2014, WFP and other organs of the UN declared the influx of CAR

refugees into Cameroon a “level 3” – or most severe—emergency, and said they were anticipating the arrival of 100,000 more refugees in coming months.

According to WFP, nearly 31 percent of new arrivals from CAR are experiencing global acute malnutrition. These refugees are in dire need of food assistance as they have minimal land for farming and extremely limited access to food in local markets due to low purchasing power and high prices. In addition, the recurrent droughts and floods in Cameroon’s northern regions since 2007 have destroyed livelihoods and exacerbated food insecurity among these households now coping with new refugees.

USAID has provided a total of $7.7 million to WFP to assist vulnerable refugees and host communities in Cameroon so far in FY 2014and will continue to provide life-saving emergency food assistance through general food distribution and supplementary feeding to refugees and host populations. The US Embassy in Cameroon says by purchasing food locally, USAID is responding both efficiently and cost-effectively, enabling families to have access to the food they need to reestablish their livelihoods.