An Overview of the Yemen Humanitarian Crisis
Yemen is currently facing the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. The country has been in a civil war since 2015 and the pandemic has made matters worse.
One of the poorest countries in the Arab world, Yemen is undergoing a civil war that is having devastating impacts on the civilians. It is currently facing the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. With the wrecked economy and deplted essential public services, the Yemen Crisis has left approximately 17 million people starving to death and over 3.6 million, relocated. Among the health concerns are diseases and public health issues such as cholera, famine and the swiftly-expanding coronavirus outbreak.
History of the Yemen Crisis
The crisis has it’s roots in the conflict between government and nongovernment forces. The clashes have destroyed public health care systems and infrastructure such has hospitals, rounding off around 80% of the total population in dire need of food, water, medical attention and other humanitarian aid. Although in 1990, the North and South of the country unified to form what we know as Yemen today, that has not stopped the conflicts and clashes between the government and non-government forces. In late 2014 as the country’s president, Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, struggled to remedy his country’s challenges, an armed group, the Houthis moved into the capital city, Sana’a, taking over government institutions. A coalition of states, led by Saudi Arabia tried to restore power back to Hadi’s government. This has only escalated chaos and crisis in the country.
As forces, 30 years later continue violence in a clash for control of Yemen, the Yemen Crisis has emerged as the worst humanitarian crisis across the globe.
Human Cost
As per the UN report, by March 2020, 7,700 people have been verified dead with the majority victims to Saudi-led air strikes. In October 2019, 100,000 fatalities were recorded by the US-led Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED). 2019 was decleared the most lethal year of the crisis as the fatalities number rose to 23,000.
Every 10 minutes, a child dies in Yemen. An estimate of 2 million children are acutely malnourished including 360,000 under 5 years of age struggling to survive.
18 miiilion do not have access to clean drinking water. Consequesntly, the Yemen Crisis has given way to the worst cholera outbreak in history, with over 2.2 million susupected cases and 3,895 related deaths to date. With the current COVID-19 pandemic, the country’s circumstances have worsened. To read more about how it has impacted Yemen, read here.
Although there is some food available, it is far too expensive for civilians to purchase. The shambled economy has resulted in prices soaring up. For example, wheat flour is 120% more expensive than it was before the crisis. The food crisis is expected to remain severe and the worst to date. Children, pregant and nursing women are most vulnerable in these conditions.
How to help
NGO Aid Map finds organizations working in Yemen and funds them.
Mercy Corps “Help communities forge new paths to prosperity in the face of disaster, poverty and the impacts of climate change.”
Help UNICEF in changing and saving lives in Yemen.
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