The cuts are taking place at a time when the need for assistance in Myanmar is steadily increasing, according to WFP. More than 15 of the country's 51 million inhabitants are said to be in need of emergency aid to be able to put food on the table daily.
Last year, the UN warned that the Rakhine region, the scene of the bloody violence campaign against ethnic Rohingyas, faces an "imminent threat of acute starvation". According to WFP, 100,000 internally displaced persons in Rakhine will now be affected by the cuts.
On Friday, UN Secretary-General António Guterres met with Rohingyas who had fled to neighboring Bangladesh. There, hundreds of thousands are also affected as WFP is forced to halve food rations in refugee camps along the border – from approximately 120 kronor to approximately 60 kronor per person and month.
The USA accounted for nearly half of the funding for the UN's food program last year, but since President Donald Trump took office, the country's aid has been significantly reduced.
Since a military coup in 2021, Myanmar has been plagued by a violent civil war, where the junta is accused of gross human rights violations against civilians and fighting rages between the regime and several armed resistance groups.
On Friday, a group of Myanmar soldiers is said to have fled across the border to Thailand after the ethnic militia group KNLA launched an attack on a military base.
