Attachments
In Numbers
2.163 mt food assistance distributed
US$ 182,387 cash-based transfers made
US$ 1.59 million six-month (April – September 2022) net funding requirements
133,053 people assisted In March 2022
Operational Updates
WFP published its 2021 Annual Country Report (ACR) on 31 March. The ACR showcases WFP’s performance and the results of its interventions contributing towards Zambia’s zero hunger agenda. Although the challenging operational context persisted throughout 2021, mainly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, WFP assisted 572,239 people through cash and food transfers, smallholder support, nutrition improvement, capacity strengthening, and social protection interventions.
More details can be found in the report online.
In March, WFP continued to implement an integrated package of humanitarian and development interventions in Zambia, reaching 133,053 people. Among the assisted, WFP reached 17,396 refugees from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) with food and cash assistance; 60,205 people through nutrition support interventions; 24,669 smallholder farmers through early recovery from drought and resilience interventions; and 30,783 people through social protection activities.
As part of efforts in addressing malnutrition through a multisectoral approach, WFP, through the National Food and Nutrition Commission (NFNC), supported the district nutrition coordination committees in developing multisectoral nutrition plans for Chisamba, Mazabuka and Nyimba districts.
The plans align the stakeholders’ nutrition activities at district level to enable district committees to effectively implement the 1,000 Most Critical Days Programme.
WFP continued to promote food preservation and processing, critical to minimizing food losses and prolonging food availability for consumption long after the harvest season.
Working with the Ministry of Agriculture, WFP facilitated a training of trainers on the solar food dryer technology for 94 provincial and district government staff. The training aimed to strengthen the capacities of staff in promoting the use of the solar food dryers in 23 districts where WFP implements nutrition interventions including the second phase of the Scaling Up Nutrition programme (SUN II); with a total of 313 staff trained in the first quarter of 2022. Additionally, WFP distributed 12 solar food dryers to selected communities in six districts (Katete, Mazabuka, Mongu, Mumbwa, Monze and Petauke).
In collaboration with the NFNC, WFP trained 21 members of the Pastors’ Fellowship in Monze to build their capacities in disseminating nutrition messages. The trained religious leaders will be raising awareness on healthy diets and promoting the consumption of nutritious foods among communities. This is part of the Healthy Diets Campaign, a nationwide health and nutrition promotion campaign implemented by the Government with WFP support to help consumers make better food choices and stimulate demand for nutritious food.
Following the integration of the insurance module on the Maano-Virtual Farmers Market, an e-commerce platform for trading surplus commodities among smallholder farmers to buyers, WFP rolled out a training of trainers for 103 district staff from the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock. The training focused on building awareness on the various insurance products, including the livestock and weather-based insurance products for smallholder farmers.
The trained staff will, in turn, raise awareness among smallholder farmers on available insurance options on the digital platform. With the marketing season approaching, WFP also trained the staff on commodity aggregation services and processes for recruiting aggregators who will be buying commodities from the smallholder farmers through the WFPsupported aggregation network using the Maano app.
Working with the ministries of agriculture and community development and social services, WFP facilitated a training of trainers on savings-for-change and market systems approaches for 118 staff from the two ministries and cooperating partners from six districts (Gwembe, Kalomo, Kazungula, Monze, Shangombo and Sioma). The training, held in Livingstone, focused on strengthening the capacities of the staff in integrating savings and market access components in the farmer organizations under the WFP-supported early recovery from drought and resilience interventions. The trained staff will cascade the trainings to animators and aggregators who will in turn support the formation of savings groups and the implementation of market access activities, strengthening smallholder farmers’ livelihoods. The integration of savings and market access activities will enhance financial inclusion and contribute to cohesion, functionality and sustainability of the smallholder farmer groups in the six districts.
With poor nutrition having far-reaching effects on schoolchildren’s health and education outcomes, WFP continued to collaborate with the Government to seek and promote innovative ways of diversifying diets through school meals and to contribute towards schoolchildren’s improved nutrition. In March, WFP finalised the setting up of 12 hydroponic gardens in Shang’ombo district to promote nutrition education and complement school meals. To enhance management of the gardens, WFP trained 120 Shang’ombo district staff from the Ministries of Agriculture and Education as well as selected community members and schoolchildren. In addition, WFP and the Ministry of Education conducted oversight missions to four districts (Chiengi, Kawambwa, Kaputa and Milenge) to monitor the implementation of the decentralised procurement strategy of the national HomeGrown School Meals programme. Designed in 2020 with WFP support, the strategy aims to ensure school children receive meals prepared with locally supplied products, in support of local markets through purchases of food from local smallholder farmers and for a more cost-effective implementation of the government programme.