UN75 Global Dialogue: WFP, Partners Brainstorm New Gender-based Violence Prevention, Food Insecurity Measures

By Doh Bertrand Nua 

Officials of the World Food Programme (WFP) in Cameroon and their Cooperating Partners (CPs) helping the organ to implement its actions on the ground have met and exchange ideas on better ways to prevent gender-based violence and food insecurity in crisis-hit regions of the country.  

WFP Country Director flanked my representatives of Cooperating Partners in group photo after workshop.

This was during a workshop at WFP’s office in Yaoundé Monday December 14, 2020. The cooperating partners were drawn from the Far North, East, Adamawa, North West and south West regions.

As explained by the WFP Country Director, Wanja Kaaria, the session was in line with the United Nations (UN) global dialogue initiative, for them to reflect as a group on the road covered so far as well as propose ideas on what they think the UN in general and WFP specifically should be doing/focusing in the next decade. 

WPF Country Director, Wanja Kaaria, addressing partners

“2020 is the year the UN turned 75 and we will be looking at the perspective between now and when the UN turns a hundred in 2045. So this year is a time of reflection and it also coincides with decade for action,” Wanja said.

The Country Director added that with less than 10 years to realise the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the session also served as a point of reflection on what is done and how to advance towards achieving the SDGs by bringing in WFP partners to think through with the organisation on SDG number2; that of achieving zero hunger as well as SDG 17. 

Coming barely a week after 16 days of activism against gender-based violence (GBV), WFP and partners also brainstormed and examined the role they can both play in tackling GBV and food insecurity related issues especially with UN Security Council resolution 2417 that provides a link between hunger and conflict. 

Participants taking lessons at workshop 

“It is clear with all the data that, where there is hunger, there is definitely conflict and vice versa and where there is a conflict, definitely it drives hunger,”Wanja stated, while contextualising it with the ongoing insecurity in the NW, SW, Far North regions that has displaced and made unable to meet their basic needs, livelihoods and opportunities where they can have food which will definitely drive hunger. 

WFP official dishing out lessons to partners 

Aside garnering support and engagement for WFP, the partners through the session shared their views and concerns about future priorities of the UN in general and WFP in particular, understood the strategic vision of WFP and increase their level of engagement with WFP’s mandate as well as have a better understanding of how to mainstream gender across WFP’s field operations. 

The closed to 24 partners who attended the session appreciated the initiative, stating that the discussions and especially the recommendations arrived at would help them better master the different situational context in which they find themselves and how to better communicate in the communities bring up other measures that would better contribute to the success of their activities on the ground.