Attachments
In Numbers
USD 356,550 cash-based transfers made*
USD 8.6 m six months (July-December 2023) net funding requirements, representing 54 percent of the total
2,959 people assisted* in JUNE 2023
*Preliminary figures
Operational Updates
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On 26 June, WFP launched the regional report for the sixth round of the WFP and CARICOM Food Security and Livelihoods Survey. The report showed that 3.7 million people (52 percent of the population) in the English-speaking Caribbean are food insecure. This resulted in a 10 percent decrease compared to August 2022. It also underlined growing financial hardship and challenges due to the rising cost of living in the pandemic aftermath.
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In June, the second phase of the Hurricane Lisa Recovery Assistance Programme with the Belize Ministry of Agriculture, Food Security and Enterprise was rolled-out. Under the programme, smallholder farmers impacted by Hurricane Lisa received digital cash assistance via the mobile wallet provider DiGiWallet to meet food and other essential needs. 2,959 farmers and their families received USD 356,550 in digital cash and vouchers to meet food and nutrition needs and ensure food security and livelihoods.
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Furthermore, in Belize, WFP launched a Digital Payment Ecosystem study to comprehensively review digital payment platform experiences. This results from successfully piloting digital payments to deliver the first round of cash assistance to people impacted by the hurricane.
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WFP continued to support governments and regional institutions like the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA) in emergency preparedness for the 2023 Atlantic hurricane season, including critical training on emergency logistics and advancing discussions on disaster risk finance and anticipatory action in Dominica, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.
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In June, works to establish the Caribbean Regional Logistics Hub and Centre of Excellence in Barbados continued to advance. The project’s first phase allowing the site to be used for surges in an emergency will be completed by the end of August 2023.