The United Nations is boosting its relief efforts in the Philippines, with food still a priority almost three weeks after Typhoon Haiyan ripped into the country, killing over 5,230 people and affecting more than 13 million others, nearly 3.5 million of them left homeless. "There has been significant progress in the delivery of relief items, and we continue to widen the geographic reach of the operation so that we can get to people on outlying islands," U.N. World Food Programme (WFP) Country Director Praveen Agrawal said Tuesday. "As we enter the third week of this emergency response, food remains a priority need for affected communities," Agrawal said Since November 13, WFP has dispatched more than 4,000 metric tons of rice and 127 metric tons of high energy biscuits for distribution by partners. WFP is working closely with the government, which has distributed more than 1.3 million family food packs containing WFP rice.
