In June, WFP delivered cash-based assistance to 267,611 IDPs, and 69,722 refugees, in nine governorates. This included an additional 33,000 refugees and IDPs added as part of WFP’s scale-up to meet increased humanitarian needs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ready-to-eat food packages of Immediate Response Rations were distributed to a few quarantined households. WFP continues to consider appeals from families via helpdesks in camps, to be included in July’s cycle of assistance.
Curfews are being maintained across the country. Limited working hours in government departments and banks, alongside liquidity issues, continue to cause some delays in WFP’s assistance to IDPs and refugees. Other delays were caused by Financial Service Provider (FSP) agents also processing the government’s social protection payments (“Minha” grant) through their systems. Meanwhile, incidents involving the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) also continue.
WFP is in the process of confirming new contracts with its FSPs for cash-based transfers. One is E-gate, which provides cash assistance via virtual pre-paid cards. This is a new delivery mechanism for WFP operations, and also innovatively works even without a smartphone variety of mobile phone. The first E-gate cash transfers are to take place during the July cycle of assistance.
The Ministry of Migration and Displacement (MoMD) continued to distribute assistance to the IDP camp population in the period January – June. WFP’s coordination is ongoing, providing smaller, complementary “top-ups” of assistance accordingly. This has resulted in savings of USD 7.6 million over the sixmonth period.
WFP Iraq’s pioneering new “cashless payments,” for people to purchase food using their mobile phones in camp shops, were featured in an Innovation segment at WFP’s virtual Executive Board, in late June. So far, the trial is being piloted in Salamiya IDP camp in Ninewa.
WFP’s new accountability to affected populations (AAP) officer is working on awareness-raising measures in camps, to boost understanding of Complaints and Feedback Mechanisms (CFMs) among beneficiaries, so they can report issues if needed. Tent-to-tent visits are planned (at safe distances).
Further to WFP’s adjustment of the resilience/ livelihood programme in response to COVID-19, urban livelihoods projects in Basra, Mosul and Wassit are planned to start as soon as it is safe. These are to provide income and work opportunities for vulnerable populations in affected peri-urban areas. The focus will be on daily wage labourers and seasonal workers who lost their job due to the crisis, to stimulate the local economies in peri-urban areas.
The School Feeding programme remains suspended until October, but as part of wider capacity strengthening work, WFP is planning to meet with the newly appointed Minister of Education in July, and is continuing to work on the COVID-19 Education response plan with the UN Country Team, in preparation for the next academic year. In addition, WFP is exploring partnerships with the private sector and other UN agencies to offer improved facilities, learning and development opportunities to students.
The latest innovation in WFP’s partnership with the Ministry of Trade (MoT), to digitalize the Public Distribution System of food rations (PDS), is the Tamwini “My Food Ration” mobile app, to be piloted in July in Baghdad. It will enable families to update and access their information, without visiting the PDS branch offices, which will also help mitigate COVID-19, waiting times, and reduce paper processing.
WFP air passenger services launched in Iraq on 15 June to support the humanitarian community in flying in and out of Baghdad and Erbil to the Sharjah hub (in the United Arab Emirates), from where passengers can proceed with various WFP or commercial flights. The service continues to be managed from WFP’s HQ, with support from WFP Iraq.