USAID Food Assistance Overview

FFP is committed to contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and pursuing USAID's mission to end extreme poverty and promote resilient, democratic societies. FFP has been mobilizing America's resources to predict, prevent, and respond to chronic and acute hunger overseas for more than 60 years, bringing help and hope to more than four billion people. The office is unique in working in both emergency and development contexts, with emergency and recovery programs comprising 80 percent of total spending. Over the past decade, the number of complex conflict and climate-driven emergencies has risen, and FFP responds to crises as diverse as the sudden onset of an Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa, the worldwide impacts of El Niño weather-related events, and the complex and prolonged conflict in Syria. FFP's emergency programs strive to provide food assistance to save lives, reduce suffering, and support the early recovery of populations affected by both acute and chronic emergencies. However, FFP also recognizes that repeatedly responding to emergencies is not sufficient to end hunger and increase food security, so it continues to promote resilience-building in the face of recurrent crises, addressing the root causes of food insecurity, and helping individuals and communities better withstand future shocks and lay the foundation for stable, inclusive growth. FFP's development activities help chronically food-insecure populations reduce their long-term need for food assistance by strengthening the capacity of developing societies to ensure access to food for their most vulnerable communities and individuals, especially women and children. FFP's programs are supported by a data-driven Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET), an improved in-kind food aid basket, and a modern supply chain management system ensuring the rapid movement of commodities. FFP's in-kind and cash-based programs comprise an increasingly diverse and flexible toolkit with which to combat hunger and malnutrition overseas. The office's programs are supported by a range of authorities and funding accounts, including Title II of the Food for Peace Act, the International Disaster Assistance (IDA) account, and Community Development Funds. FFP's programs are designed to meet the evolving challenges of global hunger, and the office's toolkit includes several different modalities of food assistance, including U.S. in-kind food, locally and regionally purchased food, cash transfers, and food vouchers. When choosing a food assistance modality, FFP considers several criteria, including appropriateness, feasibility, objective, and cost. The office looks at whether the modality is appropriate given market conditions, whether it has a reasonable chance of success considering context, infrastructure, and programming risks, whether it is best suited to meeting program objectives, and whether it is cost-efficient relative to others and in respect to available funding. FFP works in both emergency and development contexts, providing resources to the U.N. World Food Program and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in emergency situations, and supporting multi-year development activities that reduce food insecurity among vulnerable populations and help build resilience in communities facing chronic poverty and recurrent crises.