World Food Programme provides cash to families in Albania affected by floods

As many as 9,500 people affected by the February floods in southern Albania have been assisted with cash by the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) on Wednesday.

As a response to the request of the Albanian government, WFP provides assistance for the most vulnerable families in badly hit communities through cash transfers to help them rebuild their lives.

"The torrential rains forced people out of their homes and shattered the lives of many. WFP is striving to help them regain control and get back to normal life, through providing them with cash assistance," WFP Senior Regional Programme Adviser Carl Paulsson said.

According to Albanian Daily News, households in the five most-affected regions in Albania -- Fier, Berat, Vlore, Elbasan, Gjirokaster -- will receive a three-month cash grant via personal checks. Each person is entitled to 35 U.S. dollars per month (4,340 Albanian Lek), totaling 105 U.S. dollars per person (13,020 Albanian Lek).

An innovative information system for managing assistance programs, known as SCOPE, has been used in Albania to allow WFP to monitor and control all its distributions of food, cash and vouchers electronically and in near real time as well as register beneficiaries.

The beneficiaries were selected by local village committees established with participation of village elders, women and the poorest members of the community. SCOPE also stores information on the amount of food or money they are entitled to. Endi