Iran war hampers global aid, food and medicine for millions held up

JAKARTA - The war in Iran has begun to disrupt the distribution of humanitarian aid to various countries. Arab News, quoted on Sunday, April 5, reported that aid agencies are now having difficulty sending food, medicine, vaccines, and other essential supplies to millions of people in need because the main logistics routes are disrupted.

The problem is not only the closure of vital shipping routes that trigger global energy turmoil. The conflict also hits the supply chain of humanitarian agencies. The Strait of Hormuz is practically closed. Distribution routes from important logistics centers such as Dubai, Doha, and Abu Dhabi are also affected. Transport costs have skyrocketed as fuel and insurance prices rise, so the volume of aid that can be sent with the same funds has shrunk.

The United Nations has called this disruption the most serious supply chain crisis since the COVID-19 pandemic. Shipping costs are reported to have risen by 20 percent because goods must be diverted to longer routes. At the same time, the war has also created new humanitarian pressures, including in Lebanon, which has recorded at least one million refugees.

The World Food Program said tens of thousands of tons of food materials were held up in shipments. The International Rescue Committee said medicines worth 130 thousand US dollars for Sudan were still held up in Dubai. Nearly 670 boxes of therapeutic food for children with severe malnutrition in Somalia have also not moved from India. Meanwhile, UNFPA has delayed the delivery of equipment to 16 countries.

"The war against Iran and the disruption in the Strait of Hormuz risk pushing humanitarian operations beyond their limits," said Madiha Raza of the International Rescue Committee, as quoted by Arab News.

The pressure comes as many aid agencies are already hit by cuts to US foreign aid. The war has made the situation even more difficult.

A number of organizations are now forced to divert distribution routes. Some avoid Hormuz and the Suez Canal and then divert ships around Africa, which adds weeks to delivery times. Some are combining land, sea, and air routes, but the costs are much higher.

UNICEF, for example, is still according to the Arab News report, now sending vaccines to Iran via Turkey before being forwarded by land. The new route increased the cost by 20 percent and added 10 days to the delivery time. Save the Children also had to divert aid shipments to Sudan via Saudi Arabia and the Red Sea. As a result, the travel time increased by 10 days and the cost increased by about 25 percent.

The impact is starting to be felt on the ground. In Sudan, more than 90 basic health care facilities are at risk of running out of essential drugs. In Somalia, rising fuel prices have increased transportation and food costs. In Nigeria, fuel prices have jumped 50 percent and mobile health teams have been forced to reduce operations.

Aid agencies are also warning of a bigger threat: a famine. WFP estimates that if the conflict continues until June, another 45 million people could fall into acute hunger. This figure would add to the nearly 320 million people who are already facing food crises in various parts of the world.