WFP is providing emergency food assistance for Venezuelans as they arrive in Ecuador.

World Food Program

Key Developments

USAID is  responding to a complex emergency stemming from an influx of people fleeing an economic and political crisis in Venezuela to regional countries, including Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru.

Priority needs among Venezuelan populations in Ecuador include food, immigration support, legal information, livelihood opportunities, psychosocial support services, and shelter, according to humanitarian organizations.  In FY 2020, the U.S. Government has provided nearly $81 million to support the delivery of multi-sector assistance, including emergency food assistance and support for the COVID-19 response, in Ecuador.

Background

Since 2014, deteriorating economic and political conditions in the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela—marked by devastating hyperinflation, shortages of basic medicines, and limited food availability—have contributed to increasing humanitarian needs.  The 2020 UN Humanitarian Response Plan identified food security, health, nutrition, and protection as urgent needs inside Venezuela.  Severe food and medicine shortages have contributed to extensive outmigration and an influx of Venezuelans into other countries in the region, primarily to Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru, as well as smaller populations to Argentina, Mexico, Panama, and several Caribbean and Central American countries. The UN estimates that more than 5.4 million Venezuelans have left their country since 2014.

The population influx is straining the capacity of public services in some host communities, particularly in border areas of Brazil and Colombia.  Recent assessments indicate food, health care services, nutrition assistance, protection, and WASH support are among the most urgent humanitarian needs of Venezuelans and host communities in border regions, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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