The World Food Programme’s Acting Executive Director, Karl Skau, has reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to providing food assistance to 1.3 million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. Speaking during a meeting on Tuesday in Rome with Bangladesh’s chief adviser, Professor Muhammad Yunus, Skau emphasized that the Rohingya crisis remains a top priority for the UN agency based in Rome.
The meeting also addressed ongoing hunger crises in Gaza and Sudan, as well as the growing challenges in mobilizing funds to combat global hunger. Skau praised Professor Yunus’s leadership over the past 15 months, particularly his tireless efforts to draw international attention to the Rohingya humanitarian crisis.
Both leaders underscored the urgent need to increase funding to support people living in the Rohingya camps in Bangladesh. Skau lauded the high-level UN meeting on the Rohingya issue held on September 30 at the United Nations headquarters, noting that it was an important step in keeping the issue at the forefront of the international agenda.
Discussions also included exploring new funding sources, particularly from wealthy countries and multilateral financial institutions. Skau confirmed that following new humanitarian pledges by the United States and the United Kingdom during the high-level UN meeting in New York, the WFP will continue providing each Rohingya refugee with a monthly food allowance of 12 dollars.
Professor Yunus praised the WFP’s leadership in addressing global hunger and famine, and expressed gratitude for the agency’s support in implementing Bangladesh’s new school feeding program. He said, “Some Asian countries have made remarkable progress in school feeding programs. We also want to strengthen this initiative, ensuring quality while gradually expanding it.”
The meeting also reviewed the current global hunger situation. Skau highlighted that nearly 300 million people worldwide are currently facing food insecurity, and the WFP continues its efforts to dispatch hundreds of food-laden trucks to Gaza.
The discussion was attended by Food Adviser Ali Imam Mazumder, Fisheries and Livestock Adviser Farida Akhter, SDG Chief Coordinator Lamia Morshed, and Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam.
