USAID - Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance

With hundreds of thousands of people facing famine, humanitarians are working to get lifesaving aid into Sudan and into the hands of those in greatest need. At Port Sudan, a vital entry point for aid arriving to the country, USAID partner World Food Programme recently offloaded 18,000 metric tons of red sorghum for distribution to areas currently facing famine and others that are at greatest risk.

When Indonesia’s Mount Lewotobi Laki-Laki Volcano erupted earlier this week, producing pyroclastic flows, ballistic projectiles, and volcanic ash, the Volcano Disaster Assistance Program (VDAP), which is co-funded by USAID and U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), got to work. For more than 35 years, USAID has worked with VDAP to provide technical assistance to national volcano monitoring organizations, including the Government of Indonesia's Center for Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation. This includes providing hazard assessment training, early warning system development, and volcano monitoring equipment installation. Since the eruption, VDAP has provided the Government of Indonesia with remote sensing monitoring information and daily satellite images.

Communities in Zimbabwe are experiencing their worst drought in 40 years, and USAID is working diligently to help ensure families have enough food now and in the future, despite the historic dry conditions. Our Deputy Assistant Administrator Jacqueline Musiitwa spent this week in Zimbabwe, where she met with some of our trusted partners, including Cultivating New Frontiers in Agriculture (CNFA). While there, she visited farms where we are working to improve livestock health, which will boost income generation and help families put food on the table. She also visited CNFA’s agricultural programs that help farmers grow crops year-round through improved irrigation systems, allowing communities to feed their families while producing surpluses for local markets. In addition, CFNA provides youth vocational training, which equip young people with technical and business skills to help improve their ability to get good jobs. Lastly, the DAA met with both humanitarian and private sector partners to strengthen collaboration to support Zimbabweans in overcoming the challenges of drought. USAID continues to stand with our partners and the people of Zimbabwe in confronting drought and emerging stronger together.

38 years ago, two women established Costa Rica’s first forest firefighting group. This year, 66 female firefighters from across the country came together for the first National Meeting for Costa Rican Female Forest Firefighters, supported by USAID, where attendees could share skills, train with equipment, and learn from each other. In addition to their work fighting forest fires in Costa Rica, many of the women in attendance had also deployed to Canada in 2023, supporting local responders in fighting the ongoing blazes there.

ALERT: We are tracking Super Typhoon Kong-Rey as it tracks towards Taiwan's eastern coast with wind speeds of nearly 140 miles per hour and nearly 50 foot waves. USAID disaster experts in Washington, D.C. and in the region are monitoring the situation and stand ready to respond if requested.

Greetings from Des Moines! Some of our USAID food assistance experts are on hand in Iowa for the World Food Prize Foundation’s Borlaug International Dialogue event, where global leaders gather to share new insights in the fight against world hunger each year. In addition to showcasing the food assistance provided by American farmers, Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator Danielle Mutone-Smith commemorated the 70th anniversary of the Food for Peace Act, which makes it possible for USAID to respond to global crises thanks to food grown in the U.S. Save the Children US | Catholic Relief Services | USDA

The Rusayo 1 displacement camp in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo houses approximately 100,000 Congolese who are seeking safety from ongoing conflict. But it often doesn't have enough water. Many relied on unsafe lake water for daily use, causing illness among households. That all changed when USAID local partner Programme de Promotion des Soins de Santé Primaires (PPSSP) established a water delivery system that transports safe drinking water into the camp and allows families to access this precious resource. Today, that safe drinking water has helped meet basic needs and allowed people to live in better health. USAID continues to support local organizations like PPSSP to get aid where it is needed the most. Watch here:

New Photos: Our response to Tropical Storm Trami in the Philippines continues. Recently USAID partner World Food Programme and the Philippines Department of Social Welfare and Development delivered 50 trucks of vital family food packs and other relief items to communities affected by the tropical storm —which is known locally as Tropical Storm Kristine. The supplies on these trucks are enough to help 425,000 people in areas most impacted by the storm. Additionally, we worked with partner IOM - UN Migration to distribute thousands of USAID emergency supplies, including buckets with taps, kitchen sets, shelter repair kits, and shelter-grade tarps to hard-hit Bicol region.

In areas affected by conflict around the world, unexploded landmines and other ordinance can be extremely dangerous everyday hazards. And in eastern Ukraine, where much of the fighting has taken place, some areas are particularly contaminated with these lethal explosives. That’s why USAID partner UNICEF has worked closely with local groups to create mobile mine awareness teams whose goal is to teach adults and children proper mine awareness and safety skills.

Tropical Storm Trami—known locally as Tropical Storm Kristine—struck the Philippines on October 24, affecting more than 6 million people. Floods and landslides have leveled houses and forced more than 530,000 to flee their homes. To help, USAID is providing $1.5 million to trusted humanitarian partners throughout the Philippines to meet immediate needs and support populations devastated by this storm. Our humanitarian experts and partners continue to monitor conditions on the ground and assess needs among affected people.