Skip to main content

00:00:00 PM

January 20, 2025

Data  |  Knowledge  |  Privacy  |  Contact Us |

26.115286479884, 97.29423805


 

kk    Myanmar (Burma)   

Myanmar (formerly Burma) is a Southeast Asian nation of more than 100 ethnic groups, bordering India, Bangladesh, China, Laos and Thailand. Yangon (formerly Rangoon), the country's largest city, is home to bustling markets, numerous parks and lakes, and the towering, gilded Shwedagon Pagoda, which contains Buddhist relics and dates to the 6th century. ― Google

Capital: Naypyidaw

Population: 54.41 million (2020) World Bank

Continent: Asia

Currency: Myanmar kyat

Official language: Burmese

Country Profile
Events
🌐  + Countries
      ↳ None
Body

YANGON, Myanmar – The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is to mount a new food assistance operation, targeting up to 2 million vulnerable people in the poor townships in Myanmar’s main cities and other areas where population displacement has recently taken place.

With the triple impact of pre-existing poverty, COVID-19 and the current political crisis, hunger and desperation are rising sharply across Myanmar.  WFP estimates that within the next six months, up to 3.4 million more people will be hungry, particularly those in urban centres.

“More and more poor people have lost their jobs and are unable to afford food,” said WFP Myanmar Country Director Stephen Anderson. “A concerted response is required now to alleviate immediate suffering, and to prevent an alarming deterioration in food security.”

Already, there are signs of families in and around Yangon being pushed to the edge, skipping meals, eating less nutritious food and going into debt,  just to survive. WFP’s response in Yangon will target 10 of the poorest townships, many of which are home to large informal settlements. WFP is also monitoring the situation in other parts of the country, and is ready to provide assistance to affected communities, including those newly displaced by armed conflict, if required.

The latest WFP market monitoring shows that in Yangon and across the country, the average rice price has increased by 5% since January, and the average cooking oil price has increased by 18% since February. In Yangon, an up to 25% increase in cooking oil price was also recorded. The increases are particularly high in some border states including Rakhine, Kachin and Chin. In Kachin state, for example, rice prices have risen by up to 43% in some townships, and cooking oil by 32%. The price of fuel has increased by roughly 30% nationwide.

Despite the volatile situation, WFP has maintained its humanitarian assistance to internally displaced people and other vulnerable populations affected by long-running conflict. In March, WFP assistance reached 374,000 people in conflict affected areas of southern Chin, Kachin, Rakhine and northern Shan states.

In the coming months, the number of people WFP assists will nearly triple – from 1.3 million to 3.3 million. To do this, US$106 million is required urgently.

“To prevent a large-scale humanitarian crisis unfolding in front of our eyes, we must step up. We count on the international community to continue standing with the people of Myanmar,” said Anderson.

#                                              #                                              #

Resources

WFP Myanmar Analysis of the Economic Fallout & Food Insecurity

 

The United Nations World Food Programme is the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.  We are 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.

 

TAGS

 

ty
 

(WFP)
The World Food Programme
+ Agencies

↳ None
Humanitarian Impact
  3,300,000
      Affected Persons

OCHA coordinates the global emergency response to save lives and protect people in humanitarian crises.

UU

Except where otherwise noted, content on this site is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International license.

WorldsAid Copyright © 2023
Where Applicable All Rights Reserved

Disclaimer

THE DESIGNATIONS EMPLOYED AND THE PRESENTATION OF MATERIAL ON MAPS SHARED HERE ON WORLDSAID DO NOT IMPLY THE EXPRESSION OF ANY OPINION WHATSOEVER ON THE PART OF WORLDSAID.org CONCERNING THE LEGAL STATUS OF ANY COUNTRY, TERRITORY OR AREA OR OF ITS AUTHORITIES, OR CONCERNING THE DELIMITATION OF ITS FRONTIERS OR BOUNDARIES.