Funding Trends and Their Impact on Operations
Analysis of the 2008 Programme of Work
WFP's requirements dramatically increased, when a US$300 million budget revision for 2008 for Ethiopia was approved on 28 August. From January to June, Ethiopia's PRRO has seen its planned relief caseload quadrupling, from 1.2 million beneficiaries to 4.6 million because of the deadly effects of a severe drought. Now the operation needs an additional 380,000 mt of food to meet new requirements. The crisis is affecting the Horn of Africa, where the lives of 15.7 million vulnerable people in Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and Djibouti are threatened. The situation is further exacerbated by high food prices (go to page 6 for an update on the crisis).
Total 2008 gross needs for the organization's beneficiaries have risen by 14 percent (from US$4.9 to US$5.5 billion) over the past month alone and are projected to reach nearly US$6 billion by year-end. With US$4.4 billion already mobilized (including carry-over and confirmed contributions) and considering the US$1 billion that WFP must mobilize in advance to ensure continued pipeline activity, the total shortfall in resources currently stands just below US$2.3 billion.
Compared to July 2008, the number of hungry poor receiving assistance has increased by over five million, to over 89 million. Besides the crisis in the Horn of Africa, the new EMOP in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea is supporting 4.8 million people affected by floods and rising food and fuel prices.
Other budget revisions submitted for approval including Djibouti, Somalia, Chad, Zimbabwe and Afghanistan will further raise WFP's gross needs in the coming months. These budget revisions are currently under review and their value, which may change, is not accounted for in the Programme of Work until final approval.
PRROs account for more than half of all of WFP's 2008 operations, while EMOPs are worth one-third, development less than 10 percent and special operations approximately 5 percent.
WFP's Programme of Work by project category