DILI, 21 november 2023 (TATOLI) – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) recently signed an Administrative Agreement supporting the government to conduct a food security assessment of more than 9,000 households across all 14 municipalities.
The assessment is the biggest food insecurity-focused research ever conducted in the country. It will find out who are the most vulnerable to food insecurity and where they live, what people eat, and the actions they are taking to cope with rising food costs and climate shocks.
The research results will provide the government with vital data to inform emergency food preparedness, resource allocation, and social protection interventions.
At the signing ceremony ADB Country Director in Timor-Leste, Stefania Dina said that: “We are happy to partner with the government and WFP for this important undertaking. Timor-Leste still experiences some of the highest rates of undernutrition in the world. It is crucial to address the issue of food insecurity to ensure that the population has access to sufficient and nutritious food.”
Alba Cecilia Garzon Olivares, WFP Country Representative in Timor-Leste said that the assessment is not just about numbers; it’s about providing vital and timely data to inform the Government of Timor-Leste’s decision-making on emergency food preparedness, resource allocation, and social protection interventions.”
The findings will also feed into a planned 2023/24 Acute IPC Food Insecurity classification and will be used to determine if the number of food insecure people has increased since the last 2022/23 IPC analysis conducted in November 2022.
The new IPC results will be published in early 2024. WFP is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability, and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters, and the impact of climate change.
Journalist: José Belarmino De Sá
Editor: Filomeno Martins
