The World Food Programme (WFP) was on Thursday, awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for its efforts to combat hunger. Moreover, WFP has also been keen on preventing the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict. Lastly, WFP has been instrumental in creating peace in conflict-affected areas.
In his welcoming remarks, Nobel Prize Board of Directors’ chairman, Professor Carl-Henrik, said that this year’s ceremony was based on the current Covid-19 pandemic. Among the matters highlighted were scientific, literary, and humanitarian efforts that give us hope for the future.
Speaking about the award given to WFP, Carl- Henrik states that global problems can only be addressed by international cooperation.
The Programme’s Executive Director, David Beasley, thanked the Norwegian Nobel Committee for the honor. He appreciates the Nobel Committee for acknowledging WFP’s efforts to create peace and stability through combating hunger.
Scope of operation
WFP ranks as the world’s largest humanitarian organization combating hunger and enhancing food security. The program is the United Nation’s (UN) principal instrument of achieving the Sustainable Development Goal of zero hunger.
In 2019 alone, WFP offered assistance to about 100 million people, in 88 nations, who faced hunger and acute food insecurity.
Attaining Peace through Hunger
WFP places the number of hungry people globally at 690 million. Equally important, 60 percent of these people live in areas affected by armed violence. Consequently, WFP terms conflict as the single greatest challenge to zero hunger. Both the Norwegian Nobel Committee and UN Security Council have agreed with this.
Furthermore, WFP data shows that in 8 out of 10 of the worst hunger crises, conflict is one of the main drivers. In 2018, when war-torn Yemen experienced famine, WFP went into the country and salvaged the situation.
A joint research study with the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), focused in some areas of Iraq and Mali, shows that WFP’s undertakings improve peace through the following ways:
- Improving access to limited resources
- Enhancing cohesion and resolution of community grievances
- Creating opportunities and inclusion for the youth
- Strengthening state accountability which improves citizen-state trust.
For instance, the peace achieved through WFP intervention along the disputed Kyrgyzstan’s border with Tajikistan. It engaged the communities to rehabilitate irrigation canals and pipelines in the warring territories. As a result, water supply and agricultural productivity increased, preventing inter-community conflict over water.
Despite getting the peace award, WFP is still sighting a risk of people in conflict-affected countries dying of hunger. Such countries include Yemen, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and South Sudan.
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