Group: Food crisis not over

SEVERAL parts of the country continue to experience severe food shortages and floods although the drought has subsided, according to the Church Partnership Programme.
The group’s disaster coordinator and a former agriculture and livestock secretary, Mathew Kanua, said this last week when giving an overview of its drought programme.
“Since April 2015, food supply has been severely affected in many parts of Papua New Guinea by El Nino-related frosts and droughts,” Kanua said.
“Parts of the country continue to experience severe food shortages, now compounded by floods.
“With the cooperation of some churches, the CPP management team is responding quickly to the unfolding situation, working closely on assessments and information sharing with the World Food Programme (WFP), PNG National Disaster Centre, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) and the Food Security Cluster Team (jointly chaired by the Department of Agriculture and Livestock and the Food and Agriculture Organisation).”
Kanua said current “hotspots” were Morehead in Western and in Milne Bay.
“It is clear that while the rest of country to the north are receiving good rain, and sometimes too much which may be causing floods, two provinces in the south of the country continue to experience food shortages,” he said.
“CPP is continuing to collect critical data either in partnership with others or by itself. CPP has sent a representative to Western province to help DFAT during its rice distribution programme in South Fly.”