Syrian refugees in Iraq will lose access to basic foods without urgent funds

BAGHDAD -Syrian families living in camps in Iraq face alarming levels of food insecurity, according to a new figure from the World Food Programme (WFP) and UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency.

With very little funding in place to assist people with their day-to-day lives, many appear on course for a deterioration of their already testing circumstances - drowning in more and more debts that they have no means of repaying

Iraq hosts nearly 260,000 Syrian refugees, the vast majority of whom reside in the Kurdistan Region. This includes 95,745 people who live in camps - 72,000 of whom receive life-saving food and cash assistance from WFP, while UNHCR provides a range of services, including, among others, legal support, registration services, cash assistance, and education support.

86 percent of in-camp refugees remain food insecure or vulnerable to food insecurity following a string of socio-economic shocks.

The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on employment in 2020 and the consequent devaluation of the Iraqi dinar are still being felt while price rises caused by the war in Ukraine continue to reduce people's access to basic food.

Families' dependence on irregular and unpredictable cash jobs in the informal economy is a key aggravator of food insecurity. When opportunities to earn dry up, they are pushed into negative coping strategies, such as buying food on credit, reducing expenditure on basic needs, selling assets, child labour and having children drop out of school.

Urgent additional funding is needed to continue assisting 72,000 vulnerable Syrian refugees in camps in Iraq. WFP requires US$ 10.1 million to continue uninterrupted monthly food and cash assistance. Receiving this is vital as 86 percent of people in camps are particularly vulnerable to food insecurity - without the requisite funds tens of thousands of people will suffer ever more severe levels of food insecurity.

In a joint statement, Ally Raza Qureshi, WFP Representative for Iraq and Jean-Nicolas Beuze, UNHCR Representative for Iraq said:

"These are serious indicators that highlight the urgent need for supporting vulnerable Syrian refugees who are adversely affected by the current economic difficulties in Iraq. WFP and UNHCR have supported Syrian refugees since the onset of the crisis and continue to do so, yet the rising food prices and reduced purchasing power of people's income places

s them at greater risk of being food insecure.

"WFP and UNHCR are grateful to all donors for their continued and steadfast support to the most vulnerable families in Iraq and would request for their assistance to help ensure that in these trying times, no one shall go hungry."

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About UNHCR
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is a global organization dedicated to saving lives, protecting rights and building a better future for refugees, forcibly displaced communities and stateless people..

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About WFP

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian organization, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

Follow WFP on Twitter : @wfp_media@wfp_mena @wfp_iraq