TBBC starts almost every year short of funds but continues fundraising throughout the year to address shortages. In the past we have usually been able to raise the necessary funding although there have been several crises when we have had to make programme cuts.

We started this year about 11% short of funding for 2010 but were successful in getting additional funds from the USA as well as benefiting from marginally lower rice prices.

Unfortunately though, foreign exchange rates have gone against us and the result is that we have not been able to close the funding gap.

Regretfully we have therefore decided that we must make some programme cuts now to ensure that we can get through the year. Altogether these will make up about 6% of our budget.

The most serious cut will be the suspension of any further purchase of beans this year. This will affect refugee rations but at different times in each camp as current contracts are fulfilled. This suspension will lower the nutritional value of the food basket to just under 2,000 kilocalories / person / day which is 5% below international standards for emergency situations.

To protect the most vulnerable however, beans will continue to be provided in supplementary feeding programmes. Temporarily cutting beans is the only change to food rations, and a key reason for choosing this item is that the market price for beans has doubled since the end of 2009.