Gaza Emergency Relief Fund

Thank you for your support. We’re honored to hold your trust. We were humbled when the World Food Programme (WFP) chose us for their first hot meals program in Gaza. Since the end of November, our program has transformed into a hot meals program, providing over 40,000 hot meals a day, a long way from the 4000 hot meals our NGO partners were delivering in the early days of the war. 

Background: Need for Hot Meals

The war in Gaza caused mass displacement and widespread destruction. People have lost homes and any remaining sources of income. There's an acute shortage of food and prices of food have skyrocketed. All this has contributed to pervading hunger and starvation in Gaza. Providing food staples to displaced families did not make sense as displaced families could not cook them. We asked our NGO partners to cook and provide hot meals to displaced families. 

Partnership with the World Food Programme (WFP)

When the World Food Programme reached out to us with an offer to provide flour, Rebuilding Alliance (RA), proposed community-based baking, organized at multiple locations by our five Non-Governmental CBO Partners and their innovative staff. RA noted that baking bread and preparing meals near their homes — be it an overcrowded house or in a tent — for extended family and neighbors would ensure local food deliveries, help families regain control over their own lives, and be safer than standing in endless lines. 

Empowering Local Community Members through Community-based Kitchens:

Due to the safety concerns, movement of people and goods is limited. Fuel shortages have further exacerbated the situation, affecting overall mobility — delivery of commodities, services, and meals. Because of these difficulties, our NGO partners couldn't travel to distant areas and deliver hot meals. 

• In light of the circumstances, we implemented a unique strategy where each community-based partner will be running their kitchens and also overseeing neighborhood kitchens set up in different neighborhoods.  

• In keeping with our commitment to the empowerment of the local community and talent development, we have encouraged local community members to set up kitchens, buy clay ovens, and cook for the displaced families living in their neighborhoods. Each neighborhood kitchen can cook 300 and more hot meals and bread.

Sourcing Food Supplies 

The World Food Programme (WFP) has been providing basic supplies such as flour, rice, pasta, beans, chickpeas, lentils, canned food including vegetables and meat, energy biscuits, and tomato paste. Our teams, NGO partners, and neighborhood chefs find and purchase necessities such as potable water, vegetables, meat, and wood from the local market. 

Food Deliveries to the North

The challenging situation of heightened conflict and control in the northern region has made the direct delivery of food impossible. Food trucks are rarely allowed to cross to the North. 

• Despite these obstacles, one of our NGO partners which is located in Gaza City is procuring supplies in the open market and producing and delivering thousands of hot meals per day. Though our efforts are constrained by limited resources, little to no communication, and rising expenses due to increasing food prices, our partner NGO is doing its best.
• We have also partnered with a local restaurant which is providing hot meals three times a week to families taking refuge in the two Churches. 

Rapid Growth despite significant challenges

The hot meals program has experienced extraordinary growth. 

• Our NGO partners have been significantly expanding capabilities to meet the rapidly growing demand in a remarkably short period–constantly increasing the number of meals despite the challenges.  
• The challenges were and are significant. RA’s CBO Partners have been working during bombardment, without cooking gas, with limited mobility due to the lack of fuel — facing deepening food shortages. Prices of all food items have skyrocketed, leading to constant changes in the budget.
• Our teams in Gaza increased production to over 40,000 hot meals per day, a long way from the 4000 daily meals they prepared four days a week in the early days of the war.  

Thank you for your generous support that has made all this work possible.