The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which has distributed more than 67 million meals directly to the residents of the Gaza Strip, announced on Wednsesday the conclusion of a successful pilot of its new community distribution program that is getting food directly to people in need - safely, without interference, and where they live.
In partnership with Al-Amal, a Gazan non-governmental organization (NGO), the program delivered more than 2,000 boxes of food aid to residents of central Gaza.
The goal is to scale the program across multiple communities while partnering with other local NGOs, ultimately delivering more than 20,000 boxes, or 1.2 million meals, per day in all regions of Gaza.
“The Gaza Strip is a dynamic, dangerous environment that requires innovative solutions to get food to those who need it most. This is the latest example of GHF doing exactly that,” said GHF interim Executive Director John Acree. “I am encouraged by the results of this program and proud to work alongside our local NGO partner as we continue to feed the people of Gaza.”
Under this program, local distribution begins when a community leader contacts GHF, either directly or through an NGO partner. According to GHF, its team vets the community leader, assesses their need, and coordinates the delivery of an initial number of boxes of food aid. The community leader collects the boxes at a predetermined location and distributes them to known members of their community. GHF verifies that all boxes are delivered to people in need using a list of aid recipients supplied by the community leader.
As it works to scale up this program, GHF stated that it encourages local leaders throughout Gaza to contact us to request to participate in this program. "While we may be unable to fulfill all requests as we work to expand this program, we will always do everything possible to get more food directly to those who need it," the organization stated. It noted that it can be contacted on its Facebook page through DM.
“We simply can’t keep doing things how they’ve always been done,” continued Acree. “Big challenges need new thinking, and I commend our team for continuing to think outside the box as we address pressing humanitarian needs on the ground.”