- Title: Ethiopian refugees in Sudan camp complain about food quality
- Date: 30th November 2020
- Summary: UM RAKUBA, QADARIF, SUDAN (NOVEMBER 29, 2020) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF ETHIOPIAN REFUGEES GATHERED AT LUNCHTIME MEAL DISTRIBUTION LOCATION REFUGEE HOLDING UP DRIED LUMP OF PORRIDGE MADE YESTERDAY EAST AFRICA REGIONAL DIRECTOR FOR THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAM MICHAEL DUNFORD STANDING AS REFUGEES CROWD AROUND HIM REFUGEES BEING HELD BACK BY SECURITY (SOUNDBITE) (English) ETHIOPIAN REFUGEE, ARDAMES, SAYING: "This is lunchtime, the porridge Sorghum, is served in one day two times, no breakfast, just lunch and dinner. Two times in the day we feed on the Sorghum porridge, but no rice, not any other food, so this is a problem. It is better to die in our country in the fight." REFUGEE HOLDING UP DRIED LUMP OF PORRIDGE PORRIDGE SEEN IN BAG ON GROUND (SOUNDBITE) (English) ETHIOPIAN REFUGEE, MADHANI, SAYING: "The problem is not enough food. The porridge (makes) everyone sick. I swear to God, everybody has sickness. Everybody is not eating the food, the porridge is not very." VARIOUS OF DUNFORD SPEAKING TO TEAM ON GROUND REFUGEES STANDING ALONG BARRIER VARIOUS OF CHILDREN HOLDING THE PORRIDGE IN THEIR HANDS SACKS OF SORGHUM (SOUNDBITE) (English) AFRICA REGIONAL DIRECTOR FOR THE WORLD FOOD PROGRAM (WFP), MICHAEL DUNFORD, SAYING: "This is still early days, hopefully we will get all of these people off the porridge as quickly as possible. The key is we get them registered and then as soon as that's the case, then we will be giving them monthly rations they'll be able to manage it themselves." VARIOUS OF SORGHUM SACKS AND OTHER FOOD SUPPLIES INSIDE WFP TENT VARIOUS OF DUNFORD WITH TEAM INSIDE WFP TENT VARIOUS OF WFP HELICOPTER
- Embargoed: 14th December 2020 07:56
- Keywords: Ethiopia Ethiopian refugees Michael Dunford Sudan UN Um Rakuba camp United Nations WFP World Food Program refugees
- Location: UM RAKUBA, QADARIF, SUDAN
- City: UM RAKUBA, QADARIF, SUDAN
- Country: Ethiopia
- Topics: Africa,Conflicts/War/Peace,Civil Unrest
- Reuters ID: LVA001D6RD7WN
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: Dozens of Tigrayan refugees still unregistered with the United Nations complained about the quality of the food being served at Sudan's Um Rakuba camp as the east Africa regional director for the World Food Program (WFP) Michael Dunford, visited on Sunday (November 29).
Fleeing a war that has pushed thousands across the border, the Ethiopian refugees who arrived in the past week and have not yet been registered with the UN are not yet eligible to receive the one-month supply of food rations handed out by the WFP.
On Sunday unregistered refugees crowded around Dunford as he toured the camp, holding up lumps of the porridge they had been given for lunch and dinner, and shouting that it hurts their stomachs and makes them sick.
"Everybody that's taking the food is sick," said one refugee, Madhani.
The WFP food rations include rice, lentils and cooking oil. Currently many refugees are still eating a mixture made of Sorghum, a type of wheat, cooked with salt and water; it keeps them full but has little nutritional value.
Dunford said the WFP needed close to 50 million dollars over the next six months to meet the needs of the population.
He said they planned to provide enough food supplies for to up to 60,000 refugees and were working on increasing that supply to cover 100,000 refugees.
(Production: Baz Ratner, Seham Eloraby) - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2020. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None