YAOUNDE, Nov. 12 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) began distributing food to internally displaced persons (IDPs) of restive Anglophone regions of Cameroon on Monday.

Food distributions began for IDPs living in the Littoral and West regions that share border with the two English-speaking regions of Northwest and Southwest, WFP officials said.

According to an assessment made by the United Nations team, there are about seventy to eighty thousand internally displaced people in the West and Littoral regions.

Fifty thousand IDPs will receive about 1,900 metric tons of food aid during this first phase of the distribution, WFP officials said.

"We will make an assessment after the first phase and decide on how to proceed," said Abdoulaye Balde, WFP country representative for Cameroon.

Balde said a secured path needs to be created in the conflict zones before they begin distributing food to the population in distress.

According to the United Nations, more than 200,000 people have been displaced internally in the west African country by the war that has been going on for over a year now.

Government forces have been clashing with armed separatist groups who have declared the "independence" of the two Anglophone regions of Northwest and Southwest.