A total of 100 vulnerable households in Lafon County, Eastern Equatoria State, received food assistance on Tuesday from four humanitarian organizations following severe food shortages linked to drought in the area.
The aid is an initial intervention aimed at providing immediate relief to families struggling to meet their basic food needs. The distribution was facilitated under the Survivor and Community-Led Response (SCLR) approach, aimed at promoting an orderly and community-based process.
Each of the targeted households received 10 kilograms of maize flour, three kilograms of cowpeas, 1.5 liters of cooking oil, and one kilogram of salt.
The intervention was jointly supported by Global Voices Organization (GVO), Heart Right Development Foundation (HDF), Center for Development Initiative (CDI), and TITi Foundation.
Addressing the community of Lafon on Tuesday, James Kawaja, a Global Voices Organization representative who spoke on behalf of the four organizations, said their support comes following reports of famine in the area.
“We came to Lafon today because we have heard your cry. As a representative of the four organizations here, we are here to respond to the Survivor and Community-led Response, a program that addresses humanitarian issues,” he said. “Today we are here to support you in the ways you have already started. So, this support is based on your demands and needs, which are food.”
“I am glad you have received your food and distributed it among yourselves,” Kawaja added.
The organizations said the food assistance is intended to provide immediate support to families affected by food shortages while responding to the urgent needs arising from the drought situation in Lafon County.
Local representatives were involved in the community-based distribution process to improve transparency in the delivery of the assistance.
Speaking on behalf of the beneficiaries, Philip Okot commended the organizations for the donation, saying he will no longer suffer.
“Thanks a lot for giving us these items. It might look small, but these are enough,” he said. “We shall not collapse now; we shall now struggle to add on to what you already provided.”
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