Aid shipments to Ethiopia's Tigray region have been put on hold by the United Nations' World Food Programme (WFP) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) amid an ongoing internal examination by local authorities into the misappropriation of food that was designated for people in need.
The delivery of food to Tigray, the epicenter of a devastating civil war that recently ended, is the responsibility of the World Food Program, which works in partnership with other humanitarian organizations.
According to USAID Administrator Samantha Power, some of the food shipments were diverted and sold on the local market instead of being given to the intended population, who are currently facing a famine. Therefore, she asserted that food deliveries would only continue once there is full assurance that they will reach their intended beneficiaries.
Getachew Reda, the interim leader of the Tigray region, said that his government was setting up a task force to tackle the aid theft.
Since the humanitarian situation in Tigray remains fragile, it is essential that the international community continue to provide support and assistance to those affected by the conflict and the subsequent humanitarian crisis, the official stressed.
Ethiopia had experienced violent internal hostilities starting in November 2020, when the Tigray People's Liberation Front forces attacked national military bases. In response, the federal government launched an offensive in the northern region.
In November 2022, the government of Ethiopia and the Tigray rebels signed a peace agreement that ended the two-year-long armed conflict that saw, according to reports by humanitarian organizations, the deaths of tens of thousands of people and the displacement of millions more.
The deal eased the way for humanitarian aid, access to which was previously restricted in the war-ravaged region, and the gradual return of public services, like flights, banking, telecommunications, electricity, and fuel supplies.