The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has urged the Nepal Transport Union to allow the free passage of WFP convoys attempting to deliver food assistance to over 50,000 drought-affected people in mid and far western regions and over 100,000 Bhutanese refugees in Jhapa and Morang districts.

In a press statement on Tuesday, WFP said, “Both the refugees and the people of the mid-west have suffered enough. We need trucks through – and our helicopters full, so that we can continue to provide humanitarian assistance to hungry families.”

“Over 50,000 hungry people in Humla, Jumla, and Dolpa are waiting for our helicopters to arrive so that they can receive desperately needed food rations,” reported WFP representative in the region Richard Ragan.

The Nepal Transport Union has been disrupting the flow of transport trucks across Nepal since last week.

WFP is in its third phase of emergency operations to provide a two-month ration to over 225,000 drought-affected people in mid and far-west Nepal. Over 265 helicopter flights are planned out of Surkhet to deliver 730 metric tons of food to these remote communities. In the east, WFP provides food to over 100,000 Bhutanese refugees in seven camps.

“WFP provides food assistance to the most vulnerable men, women and children. Without the ability to freely transport food aid across Nepal, over one million people could go hungry,” reported Ragan.

With an annual budget of nearly USD $30 million dollars for Nepal, WFP will provide food assistance to nearly 1.78 million Nepalis, and over 106,000 Bhutanese refugees at the close of 2006.