WFP offers cheap rice to help urban poor people<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The government in cooperation with the World
\nFood Program (WFP) launched on Wednesday a new program to help
\nurban poor people most vulnerable to food shortages by selling
\nthem rice at 40 percent of the market price.<\/p>\n
Under the program, WFP will sell medium-quality rice at Rp
\n1,000 per kilogram with a ceiling per family of a maximum 5
\nkilograms per week or a maximum 20 kilograms per month.<\/p>\n
Philip J. Clarke, the country representative of the WFP, said
\nthe program aimed to assist 2.5 million poor people in urban
\nslums in the Greater Jakarta area, Surabaya, Semarang, Bandung,
\nand possibly Medan, which is not covered by the government
\nassistance.<\/p>\n
\"WFP will provide 83,650 tons of rice, worth US$27.8 million
\nfor this program. The program is to start today (Wednesday)
\nlasting for eight months until the end of March 2000,\" Clarke
\nsaid after the signing ceremony for the agreement.<\/p>\n
The program, called the Community's self-reliance Market
\nOperation, was launched by Clarke and officials from the State
\nMinistry of Food and Horticulture and the State Logistics Agency
\n(Bulog).<\/p>\n
Clarke said the market operation would be implemented in
\ncooperation with non-governmental organizations (NGOs), which
\nwould be responsible for the assessment of the beneficiaries,
\ntheir registration and the sale of rice under the supervision of
\nWFP and the state minister's office.<\/p>\n
\"The NGOs have conducted door-to-door surveys to register the
\nsuitable recipients,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Targeted beneficiaries are those who can only afford one meal
\nper day, can not afford to consume protein-rich meals once a
\nweek, and do not have jobs.<\/p>\n
Other recipients will be those who can not obtain a citizen
\nidentification card and are not covered by the government's
\nspecial market operation.<\/p>\n
State Minister for Food and Horticulture A.M. Saefuddin said
\nafter the signing ceremony that the prolonged drought and
\ndeteriorating economic conditions over the past year had combined
\nto increase the number of people deemed as vulnerable to food
\nshortages.<\/p>\n
\"This program is different from the government's special
\nmarket operation because it will be focused on people in urban
\nslums, who no longer have access to either industrial or
\nagricultural resources,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Saefuddin said his office and WFP had allocated 50,850 tons of
\nrice to be distributed to 285,000 families in the Greater Jakarta
\narea, 16,800 tons to 120,000 families in Surabaya, 8,800 tons for
\n55,000 families in Semarang, 5,400 tons for 30,000 families in
\nBandung and 18,000 tons for 10,000 families in Yogyakarta.<\/p>\n
Clarke said funds generated from the program would be managed
\nby WFP to be used for the purchase of locally produced rice, for
\nuse in other WFP-assisted operations in Indonesia and to
\nencourage 237,000 primary school children to stay at schools.<\/p>\n
Clarke said WFP had so far channeled $135 million worth of
\nfood aid, including rice, wheat and blended food to Indonesia.
\n(gis)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/wfp-offers-cheap-rice-to-help-urban-poor-people-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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