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12 September 2002 By Grethe Ostern in Malawi The Red Cross trucking fleet for the food operation in southern Africa is now in place in Malawi. The first M6 truck hit the dirt roads of Malawi on 10 September, carrying food to a Malawi Red Cross distribution site in Ntchisi, 80 kilometers north-east of the capital Lilongwe. On the same day, the International Federation and the World Food Programme (WFP) signed a partnership agreement as part of their response to the unfolding food crisis in southern Africa. Seven hundred and eighty households in Ntchisi in Malawi had been selected for this food distribution. The hundreds of people - mostly women - waited patiently and quietly for their name to be called up for identification before receiving the food rations. Some of the women with small children sought refuge from the blazing sun in the shade of the big M6 truck. When the Malawi Red Cross, like its sister societies in the region, select the people who are to receive the food assistance, they pay particular attention to women. They are often at the head of the most vulnerable households. All the women at the distribution site in Ntchisi had a story to tell. There were young women struggling to take care of their younger sisters and brothers after having been orphaned. There were widows left with the burden of providing for their children alone. There were grandmothers taking care of their orphaned grandchildren. There were women who have taken in orphans after their relatives and neighbours have died. And there were countless women whose capacity to cope with the food crisis is stifled by the fact that they have sick husbands and other family members to care for. It is people in these situations in the rural areas of Malawi that the Red Cross has to reach and the Red Cross trucks will play an instrumental role in reaching them. "Strong and sturdy, the ex-army M6 trucks will be ideal for reaching distribution sites, especially during southern Africa's forthcoming rainy season. The trucks will able to travel on the most difficult roads, and also off-road. They will greatly increase Red Cross' capacity to reach villages that are hard to access," said the secretary general of the Norwegian Red Cross, Jan Egeland, who attended the distribution in Ntchisi. After the food distribution, the Malawi Red Cross was the host of an important event - the signing of the agreement between the International Federation and the WFP on an operational partnership as part of their response to the unfolding food crisis in southern Africa. Egeland signed the agreement on behalf of the International Federation, together with the WFP's Executive Director and UN Special Envoy, James T. Morris. The International Federation and the WFP will supply and deliver food and non-food items to people in five southern African countries (Lesotho, Malawi, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe), where 13 million people are facing severe food shortages. The International Federation is making the trucking fleet - donated by the Norwegian Red Cross and the Norwegian government - available to WFP. The Transport Support Package (TSP) consists of 203 M6 trucks, two fuel tankers, one rescue vehicle, 10 long haul truck/trailers, four mobile workshops, three mechanical workshops, 20 land cruisers, five forklift trucks, 24 deployable warehouses, radio equipment and spare parts. The vehicles will be transporting WFP food not only for Red Cross distributions, but also for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) responding to the emergency. The WFP will cover the running costs for the TSP and the International Federation will employ and train all the necessary staff. After the signing of the agreement, James T. Morris said that there had been a "desperate need for trucking capacity" to carry out the operation in southern Africa, and that the cooperation with the International Federation was strategic and timely. "It will give us much greater success in reaching the most vulnerable with food aid and thus help to mitigate the effects of the humanitarian crisis," added Morris. Related Links: Press release: Red Cross Red Crescent and WFP working together in southern Africa food crisis Emergency Appeal: Food crisis in southern Africa Make an Online Donation More on: The southern Africa food crisis |
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