Food bank at Barekot to address food crisis

JAJARKOT: Efforts are underway to set up a food bank at Barekot of the district so that it could address the food crisis.

The food bank is being established with the assistance of World Food Programme (WFP), Barekot Rural Municipality and other donors. The food grains collected and stored with help of various bodies would be utilized to feed the people who are adversely affected by natural disasters and food shortage.

Even a building for the food bank has been constructed at Lissa of Barekot-2 with the financial assistance of WFP and technical assistance of Panchtara Youth Protection Forum, Jajarkot. Jajarkot district has been suffering the food crisis due to geographical difficulty, lack of transportation and irrigation, and natural disaster.

But the food bank would be a huge relief to the vulnerable people, said Mahendra Shaha, Chairperson of Barekot Rural Municipality.

The WFP constructed a building with two rooms at the cost of Rs 4.1 million under the infrastructure development programme. One room is for running office and another for storing food grains.

The food bank would be brought into use shortly with the coordination of the rural municipality. Even a work procedure for the operation and management of food bank has been passed, according to chief administrative officer at rural municipality, Govinda Bahadur Singh.

WFP’s infrastructure development programme is aimed at providing employment to 1,238 peoples affected by the landslides. It has already released over Rs 31 million in total to the individual bank accounts of members of the families which survived disaster.

Similarly, hydropower, irrigation, roadway, schools building, drinking water projects are supported by the WFP programme in the district.