World Vision, the largest humanitarian aid agency in Zimbabwe, will resume humanitarian relief and development operations following the lifting of a suspension order that was declared by the government in June. 

“Our immediate priority is to reach out to vulnerable communities, especially children, with minimum delay,” said Leslie Scott, National Director of World Vision Zimbabwe.

World Vision will be distributing around 4,000 metric tonnes of food that will benefit about 700,000 people, which includes 400,000 school children in supplementary feeding programs and 100,000 elderly and chronically ill people in institutional feeding programs.

Child sponsorship programs will also start immediately along with all other community development projects such as livelihood training and workshops, agricultural recovery programs and water and sanitation projects.

World Vision has been working in Zimbabwe since 1973. The organization currently assists more than 72,000 children in Zimbabwe, including 10,000 children sponsored by Canadians.

According to U.N. reports on crop and food assessment in Zimbabwe, around 5.1 million people are likely to experience shortage of food between January and March 2009, up from 2.04 million people between July and September 2008.