The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Three weeks after super Typhoon Odette devastated a huge swathe of the Philippines, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today warned of a severe nutrition and food crisis in hard-hit communities if immediate food needs are not met over the coming six months.
“The needs are increasing every day, so from the time that the humanitarian needs and priorities were started that was launched on December 24, the needs have gone from 2 million people affected of up to 7 million people.”, said Brenda Barton, WFP’s Country Director for the Philippines at a press briefing at the United Nations in Geneva. She added that “there are still many many areas that we have not been able to reach, many areas without telecoms, still today without electricity. I think 18 municipalities still don’t have water, and ,of course, we are seeing incidents with diarrhea”.
Food security and malnutrition rates before typhoon Odette hit the Philippines were already high in areas like Caraga region where 53 percent of families were unable to afford a nutritious diet while childhood stunting was 36 percent.
WFP requires USD 25,8 million to provide food assistance to 250,000 typhoon survivors. Of this, USD 20.8 million is needed for food and cash transfers over the coming 6 months. Three weeks into the crisis, WFP so far has only received USD 4.7 million.
“We are really seeing a combination of factors on the ground that are of grave concern”, said WFP’s Brenda Barton. “The Philippines is already a country that has had stagnant and high levels of poverty and malnutrition in the particular area that was hit”. Ms Barton added that “one of the islands was a very famous tourist area, famous for surfing, people came from all over the world. In those areas 90 to 95 % of the houses has been destroyed”.
Typhoon Odette was the strongest typhoon that hit the Philippine archipelago in 2021. Notwithstanding its relatively low death toll, Typhoon Odette (known internationally as Rai), had been devastating. It had made landfall nine times over the course of two days in mid-December in an area the size of Austria.
“It started as a tropical storm and it quickly evolved into a super typhoon and it just ripped across an area that is enormous just really erasing things to the ground, houses to the ground”, Ms Barton recalled. “The area that I saw there was no building that was untouched, no house without a roof. All houses were without roofs and it was heartbreaking because it was on Christmas eve and the Filipino community comes together and celebrates Christmas.”
The situation is worsening due to rains and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We have continued rains, we have communities that cannot go into their houses, they are living in evacuation centers and Covid, just like in other parts of the world, is now of course starting to rip through the Philippines with its highly dense population”, said Ms Barton.
-ends-
- Exterior wide shot, United Nations flags flying
- SOUNDBITE (English): Brenda Barton, Country Director WFP Philippines: “The needs are increasing every day, so from the time that the humanitarian needs and priority were started that was launched on December 24, the needs have gone from 2 million people affected of up to 7 million people. There are still many many areas that we have not been able to reach, many areas without telecoms, still today without electricity. I think 18 municipalities still don’t have water, and of course we are seeing incidents with diarrhea”.
- Exterior medium shot, United Nations in Geneva
- SOUNDBITE (English): Brenda Barton, Country Director WFP Philippines: “We are really seeing a combination of factors on the ground that are of grave concern. The Philippines is already a country that has had stagnant and high levels of poverty and malnutrition in the particular area that was hit. One of the islands was a very famous tourist area, famous for surfing, people came from all over the world. In those areas 90 to 95 % of the houses has been destroyed”.
- Wide shot, UN flag alley with “Broken chair” at the Place des Nations
- SOUNDBITE (English): Brenda Barton, Country Director WFP Philippines: “It started as a tropical storm and it quickly evolved into a super typhoon and it just ripped across an area that is enormous just really erasing things to the ground, houses to the ground. The area that I saw there was no building that was untouched, no house without a roof. All houses were without roofs and it was heartbreaking because it was on Christmas eve and the Filipino community comes together and celebrates Christmas.”
- Exterior medium shot, United Nations in Geneva
- SOUNDBITE (English): Brenda Barton, Country Director WFP Philippines: “We have continued rains, we have communities that cannot go into their houses, they are living in evacuation centers and Covid, just like in other parts of the world, is now - of course - starting to rip through the Philippines with its highly dense population.”
- Wide shot, flag alley with United Nations in background
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
Institutionalised forced labour by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea constitutes grave violations of human rights – UN report
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
Time is running out for starving civilians in Sudan, UN humanitarians warned on Tuesday, while talks involving the country’s warring parties continue in Geneva this week.
1
1
1
Edited News | WHO
DRC faces a severe humanitarian crisis with 25M in need and rising conflict-related issues.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA
A gimmer of good news emerged from Gaza on Tuesday as patients returned to at a newly reopened UN health centre in Khan Younis, six months after it was severely damaged and forced to close by heavy fighting, the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) said.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN condemns attacks on Kyiv hospitals, calls for immediate action to protect civilians.
1
1
2
Edited News | WHO
In Gaza, soaring temperatures, hunger and unsanitary conditions present an ever more deadly threat to a population under constant attack, UN humanitarians warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA , WMO , IFRC
Hurricane Beryl smashes into Caribbean, turns sights on Mexico As Hurricane Beryl’s destructive path shifted to Mexico on Friday after roiling the Caribbean, UN agencies and partners said that the emergency response was underway, before warning that a very long and damaging hurricane season looks increasingly likely.
1
1
2
Edited News | IOM , mcc , UNHCR
Refugees and migrants continue to face extreme forms of violence, exploitation and death on sea and on land across Africa as they attempt to leave the continent, UN agencies said on Friday, in an appeal to border authorities to do more to protect them.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk at the 56th Human Rigths Council, made the following update on the situation of human rights in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA , WHO
New evacuation orders issued by the Israeli army for areas in southern Gaza are expected to impact 250,000 people, including eastern Khan Younis and Rafah, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | UNRWA , WHO
Gaza: People are desperate, they need everything, says UN aid agency Panic and desperation now grip ordinary Gazans struggling to survive, UN humanitarians said on Friday, amid fuel shortages of fuel and dwindling supplies that have prevented aid teams from doing their job.
1
1
1
Edited News | OCHA
UN aid teams and partner organizations remain deeply committed to delivering lifesaving supplies into Gaza, despite the increasing dangers of working there, the Organization’s top aid official said on Wednesday.