Sana’a - SABA
Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, Samir Bajjala, met today with Abdullah Al-Wardat, Director of Donor Partnerships at the World Food Programme (WFP) in Rome and High-Level Envoy to Yemen.
The meeting, attended by Undersecretary of the Ministry for the Welfare and Services Sector, Yasser Sharaf Al-Din, and several ministry officials, highlighted the level of cooperation and partnership between the government and the WFP during previous periods.
Minister Bajjala stressed the importance of expanding cooperation and restoring the program’s full operations in Yemen, free from external interference as had occurred in the past, which led to reduced or suspended aid and negatively impacted millions of vulnerable families.
He emphasized the need for the WFP to fulfill its commitments to Yemen, urging a swift resumption of food assistance according to previous agreements and calling for the humanitarian file to be kept neutral.
The Minister expressed confidence in the new envoy’s ability to carry out his humanitarian duties, confirming the Ministry’s full readiness to facilitate efforts and overcome obstacles to ensure successful cooperation and delivery of aid to those in need due to the ongoing crisis.
For his part, Undersecretary Sharaf Al-Din and ministry officials outlined the humanitarian gap caused by the WFP’s suspension of operations in Yemen, which has worsened the crisis.
The international envoy affirmed that the WFP is a humanitarian organization with no political affiliations. He acknowledged the significant challenges ahead and emphasized the need to resolve outstanding issues in order to fully resume the program’s activities in Yemen, to serve its target beneficiaries.
He noted that he was tasked with this mission to ensure the success of the WFP’s role in Yemen, and confirmed that he would be working in the coming days to reorganize the program’s operations internally, externally, and with donor countries, to meet its obligations.
| more of (Local) |