Following is the text of the WFP document:

World Food Programme (WFP)
18 Jan 2002

Hunger in Afghanistan: Frequently Asked Questions

WHAT IS WFP DOING TO IDENTIFY THE HUNGRY IN AFGHANISTAN?

Rapid assessment teams are currently being set-up to:

(i) locate people in need of food aid in neglected and remote areas;

(ii) assess the success of WFP's implementing partners in distributing food aid.

The teams, which will travel by helicopter, will include staff from WFP's Afghan Food Security Unit (AFSU) or the Vulnerability Analysis and Mapping unit (VAM), a logistics expert capable of assessing air drop potential, a food security monitor and a health/nutrition expert.

If there is sufficient capacity, space will be made available for other agencies and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).

AFSU /VAM has been strengthened and staff are now on the ground in Afghanistan working closely with implementing partners. According to WFP's plan of action, January will be devoted to research and February onwards to field work.

The results of the joint assessments will be channeled into food aid programming; this will include adjusting or fine-tuning the composition of WFP's food basket with mixed commodities for different population groups.

DOES WFP KNOW WHERE THE "POCKETS" OF MALNUTRITION ARE LOCATED?

Notwithstanding the large quantities of wheat dispatched to Afghanistan over the past two months, WFP believes that there are still areas where there may be pockets of malnutrition.

The prime areas of concern are remote mountain villages, including some located near the former front lines of Afghanistan's recent civil conflict.

The only first hand information available to WFP to date concerns Zarah district, Balkh province, where WFP staff report that conditions are very serious and exacerbated by extreme cold. However, food already positioned by WFP in the area is now being distributed and 380 metric tonnes more is being called forward.

There are unconfirmed reports of vulnerability in Imam Zahib in the north-eastern corner of Kunduz. This area was also, until recently, part of the front line. Security clearance is being obtained for WFP staff to visit the area to verify the situation.

As the latter area is close to Tajikistan, WFP's office in Dushanbe has offered to support WFP Afghanistan by making an assessment. WFP is operating in Kunduz with IOM and NCI -- both NGOs.

Other areas high on WFP's priority list will be northern Balkh, Faryab and Saripul in the north, Badghis in the north-west and Ghor in the west covering the disticts of Chagcharan, Charsada, Taiwara and Sharak.

Access to these areas has been limited over the past few months because of security concerns. Vulnerable areas in the central highlands and north-eastern Afghanistan are still being identified.

HOW MANY AFGHANS REQUIRE FOOD AID?

Until WFP actually visits the areas at risk of malnutrition, or receives reliable information from its implementing partners on the ground, the Agency cannot put a precise figure on either the number of people who require food aid or the amount of food needed.

Since late September, WFP has dispatched over 200,000 tonnes of relief food to Afghanistan and has positioned enough food to meet expected needs. However, if necessary the Agency has highly nutritious biscuits on standby for emergency distributions until a general ration (wheat, oil, pulses) is organised.

ARE THERE STILL PARTS OF AFGHANISTAN THAT WFP CANNOT REACH?

Other than areas that are known to be heavily mined, WFP does not believe there are any parts of Afghanistan it cannot access -- provided there are sufficient resources.

In Zari province, for example, WFP staff were able to contract an additional five trucks and some 300 donkeys to move food to the hungry.

Helicopters will also give the Agency the possibility to fly in small quantities of emergency food aid, although this may be impaired by poor weather conditions or lack of landing space. As a result, WFP is also considering the use of "All terrain multi-purpose machines". These run on tracks similar to tanks and are ideal for snow.

WHEN WILL THE HELICOPTERS BE READY TO START FLYING?

WFP is working with helicopter brokers to urgently send aircraft to the Afghan region; the helicopters will be deployed in three phases with the first two helicopters expected on the ground during the last week of January.

Phase I: two helicopters to Mazar-I-Sharif to cover assessments in Balkh, Samangan and Jawjan provinces.

Phase II: two helicopters to Kabul to cover Bamyan and Wardak provinces.

Phase III: two helicopters to Chaghcharan to cover Ghor province; two helicopters for Mazar-i-Sharif.

HOW MANY STAFF CAN WFP DRAW ON TO FEED THE HUNGRY?

WFP currently has over 110 staff spread across seven countries (Afganistan, Pakistan, Iran, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan) dedicated to the Afghan regional emergency operation.

In Afghanistan itself, there are currently 40 international staff members based in five offices at Kabul, Hirat, Mazar-I-Sharif, Jalalabad, Faizabad and Kandahar.

The ability of WFP and other UN agencies to deploy more international staff is limited by security precautions involving the availability of accommodation and evacuation procedures.

In addition, the 400 national staff members in Afghanistan is of a very high quality.

WHAT SECURITY CONSTRAINTS DOES WFP STILL FACE IN AFGHANISTAN?

The UN security office assesses security to ensure that both international and national staff can safely work. There are still large areas of Afghanistan that remain off-limits to UN staff.

World Food Programme (c) 2001