“World Central Kitchen started on a simple idea: when people are hungry, send in cooks. Not tomorrow, today.” This is how the American-Spanish leader, José Andrés, thought of his NGO which he founded in 2010. At that time, nothing suggested that, fourteen years later, seven of his collaborators would be killed in a strike Israeli, this Monday April 1st.
In 2010, José Andrés thought about and then created his organization following the earthquake in Haiti. He had gone to this Caribbean island to provide emergency food aid to survivors. In the United States, after hurricanes Harvey and Maria in 2017, following the cyclone in Madagascar in 2022, in Morocco then in Japan after the earthquakes of 2023 and 2024… The NGO quickly developed to intervene in affected regions by natural disasters.
“When others move away from disasters, we have extraordinary people who go into disaster areas to help people,” said WCK founder on CBS, in November. And continues: “In humanity’s worst moments, the best of humanity always shows up. They make the magic happen, literally.”
Deployment in Ukraine then in Gaza
In 2022, the NGO deployed to Ukraine for its first operation in a war zone. In two years, more than 260 million meals have been distributed, specifies the organization on his website. But for employees on site, the risks are great. As evidenced by the Russian strike which injured four staff members in Karkhiv in April 2022, as reported by the group’s former general director on his account.
Present on all fronts, WCK has gained popularity and enjoyed rapid growth, with more than $500 million in contributions and grants in 2022, as stated The New York Times. That year, the organization had 94 employees.
Since October 7, 2023, the date of the deadly Hamas offensive in Israel, World Central Kitchen has invested in the Gaza Strip, where the NGO claims to have sent more than 37 million meals and opened 68 community kitchens in nearly six months of war. On site, the organization teams up with local providers to provide aid to Palestinians in need.
200 tons of food delivered in March
On March 12, José Andrés boarded WCK’s first humanitarian boat in Cyprus, bound for the Gaza Strip. The ship was carrying some 200 tonnes of rice, flour and lentils. A second convoy followed on March 30. Thus, the NGO became the first entity to provide aid to the enclave by sea in almost two decades, underlines The New York Times.
For good reason, many convoys transiting by land have been delayed or even blocked by the Israeli authorities at border crossings. World Central Kitchen said that on average per day, only 10 trucks out of the 20 they sent were admitted to Rafah in southern Gaza. Some days nothing happened. WCK had even built a pier on the Gaza coast to unload its cargo.
Since the Israeli army’s strike, WCK has questioned its commitment on the ground. On his websitethe NGO is categorical: “World Central Kitchen is immediately suspending our operations in the region. We will soon make decisions regarding the future of our work.”