Rome: World Food Programme (WFP) Acting Executive Director Carl Skau has reaffirmed the organization’s commitment to mobilizing food aid for 1.3 million Rohingyas sheltered in Bangladesh, citing the crisis as a top priority for the Rome-based UN agency. Skau made these comments during a meeting with Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at a hotel in the Italian capital, according to Chief Adviser’s Press Wing.
According to Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha, the meeting primarily addressed the ongoing Rohingya crisis, famine situations in Gaza and Sudan, and challenges in mobilizing funds to combat global hunger. Skau praised Professor Yunus for his leadership over the past 15 months, particularly his efforts to refocus international attention on the Rohingya humanitarian crisis. Both leaders emphasized the urgent need for increased funding to support the Rohingyas residing in camps in Bangladesh.
Skau commended the September 30 high-level UN meeting on the Rohingya issue-convened at Professor Yunus’s request-stating that it had successfully “brought international attention back to the crisis.” He stressed the importance of keeping the issue high on the international agenda. The discussion also included exploring potential funding sources from wealthy nations and multilateral financial institutions.
Skau noted that following fresh humanitarian aid commitments from the United States and the United Kingdom, announced during the UN high-level meeting in New York, WFP would continue providing the $12 monthly food stipend to each Rohingya. Professor Yunus expressed appreciation for WFP’s global leadership in combating hunger and thanked the UN agency for its support in launching a new school feeding program in Bangladesh.
The meeting also touched on global hunger conditions. Skau mentioned WFP’s ongoing efforts to deliver food to Gaza, amid rising food insecurity affecting nearly 300 million people globally. The meeting was attended by Food Adviser Ali Imam Majumder, Fisheries and Livestock Adviser Farida Akhter, SDG Coordinator Lamiya Morshed, and Foreign Secretary Asad Alam Siam.