The Crisis in Yemen Has Gotten Worse, and Now There’s Not Enough Money to Help
By: Jonathan Pezzi
Photo by Kate Nevens
Lexington— As Yemen faces the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, a recent United Nations emergency funding drive came up short $1 billion.
Despite the participation of 130 governments and aid organizations, the fundraiser hosted on June 2nd failed to meet its $2.45 billion target. As a result, 30 of the UN’s 41 programs in Yemen will shut their doors until the money is found.
Why Yemen Needs the Money
There are three major, interconnected emergencies affecting Yemen, resulting in the world’s most dire humanitarian catastrophe. Approximately 80% of Yemen’s population (24 million people) relies on external aid. 10 million face the threat of famine.
Amid the Arab Spring, Yemen’s president of two decades, Ali Abdullah Saleh, stepped down following nationwide protests. Despite Saleh’s departure, the country soon descended into civil war as competing forces jockeyed for power. Since the war began in 2014, over 100,000 people have been killed, many of them civilians. A brief ceasefire was called, but it expired last month. Now, the fighting continues, with pro-government air raids barraging Sanaa and other provinces according to sources.
Simultaneously, and largely caused and exacerbated by the conflict, Yemen is facing a series of devastating epidemics. Yemen has one of the worst outbreaks of Cholera in the world, according to Doctors Without Borders, with over one million cases countrywide. Already 110,000 people have been infected this year.
Other diseases such as Dengue Fever and Malaria have plagued the nation as well, with malaria holding an endemic status and dengue infecting over 30,000 people as of November of last year. It is possible the numbers are far higher due to the difficulty of gathering information in conflict areas or those cutoff by poor infrastructure.
Like other countries around the globe, Yemen is now dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic as well. There have been only 919 confirmed cases but a concerningly high 251 deaths. This 25% mortality rate is alarming and is likely the result of two factors. Due to an already overwhelmed and emaciated health infrastructure, few COVID-19 patients are able to receive life saving assistance if they are able to receive care at all. Additionally, because the public health infrastructure is so restricted, testing is rare and often only available by aid organizations. In all likelihood, the case count is much higher than the official confirmed number, partially explaining the high mortality rate.
Funding Shortfall
As a result of the pandemic, there are two major financial channels assisting Yemen that have started to dry up.
For decades, Yemeni workers employed abroad have provided much needed income to their families back home. Since 2015 and the start of the civil war, Yemen’s domestic economy has been largely crippled, causing the country’s residents to lean far more on these remittances being sent in from overseas. However, as the pandemic has forced most countries into lockdown and pushed millions into unemployment, these direly needed finances are becoming increasingly sparse.
This, in conjunction with most UN participating countries facing budgetary constraints of their own due to COVID-19, makes for potential disaster.
Fortunately, the United States announced an additional $225 million in emergency aid to Yemen to support food programs, though much more will be needed from other nations in the international community.
Without more funding, many NGO officials fear the worst. “This means UNICEF will not be able to provide fuel to operate water pumping stations, or de-sludge sewage, or maintain crumbling water and sanitation infrastructure”, said Marixie Mercado, a spokesperson for UNICEF. “It means we will not be able to distribute basic family hygiene kits that include soap, which is so critical for preventing both cholera and COVID in a context where millions don’t have access to handwashing facilities.”
Every month, the UN and its partners are providing assistance to more than 10 million people across the country.