South Korea donates 24,600 tons of rice to Cuba

The government of South Korea donated 24,600 tons of rice to Cuba, a shipment that will be distributed through the World Food Programme (WFP) of the United Nations and will primarily be aimed at the population in the eastern part of the island, with an emphasis on vulnerable individuals.

The information was confirmed on the social network X by the United Nations System in Cuba, which specified that the assistance was managed by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Korea as part of its humanitarian cooperation programs facilitated through international organizations.

According to the WFP, half of the shipment has already been unloaded at the port of Santiago de Cuba, which will allow for a doubling of the rice rations distributed by the organization in the eastern provinces for five months, one of the regions hardest hit by the economic and food crisis plaguing the Island.

The remainder of the donation will arrive at the port of Havana and will be allocated to other provinces of the country. In this case, the distribution will take place bi-monthly over the course of a year, with the aim of expanding the program's coverage and benefiting the priority sectors identified by the international organization, reported the official media CubaSi.

The PMA highlighted that this contribution strengthens food security and enables the maintenance of national coverage for populations deemed at high risk, in a context marked by food shortages, inflation, and limitations of the state distribution system.

Moreover, the organization indicated that the donation will help enhance the emergency response and support the recovery of communities affected by recent weather events, such as the hurricane Melissa.

The arrival of this donation highlights Cuba's dependence on international aid to ensure basic food supplies for vulnerable sectors, at a time when national production of rice and other essential products continues to decline, and the state supply system fails to meet the minimum needs of the population.