(Manila) – The first batch of emergency relief (some 44 metric tonnes of high energy biscuits) for the victims of super typhoon Haiyan from the UAE has reached Philippines. The batch landed with two more batches en route. The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) mobilised the food supplies from the UN Humanitarian Response Depot (UNHRD) in Dubai. Bill Campbell, officer in charge at the WFP in Dubai said each batch could feed up to 120,000 people.
From Manila, the biscuits have been sent to Cebu and Tacloban, the hardest-hit areas in central Philippines. Campbell said the high-energy protein food would help abate some of the hunger. “The high-energy biscuits are precious in the early stages of an emergency as they are nutritious, need no cooking and are easy to transport.”
Most of the affected provinces are without food, water and electricity, while airports are unusable except one and many roads remain impassable.
