Statement UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, David Gressly, opening remarks at the Sana’a Center online briefing on the UN-coordinated plan to address the threat of the FSO Safer 13 June 2022
Well, Spencer, thank you very much. It’s really great to be here. I would like to thank you and the Sana’a Center for the opportunity to reach out to all of the media that’s online. And I look forward to answering questions as we go forward this afternoon. I would like to start off with just a brief outline of the overall plan that we have in place and then talk about the resource requirements, which is the critical piece that we’re facing right now. We do have an operational plan that has the confirmed commitment from the authorities here in Sana’a and, equally important, the government of Yemen. In fact, we just had consultations on that today, in both Sana’a and Aden to reconfirm that. So this plan is well endorsed in terms of the overall approach.
So that was an important step to get this operation going. We are very far advanced on procurement of the salvage operation and vessel procurement for transferring the oil. So we’re basically pretty ready to go. We have about $144 million we need to carry the whole operation through in two stages – an initial emergency operation just to get the oil out of the current Safer tanker into a secure vessel and then a longer term, second stage to replace the existing capacity that the current FSO vessel represents. Frankly speaking, the primary constraint we face is no longer really political, security, procurement or operational. It’s resources. And that’s really why I want to highlight that aspect today. And so we’ve made an appeal in the Netherlands back in May where we raised about $33 million. We need $80 million to start this operation – to do the emergency phase. We need the additional $64 million, approximately, to complete the second stage. So we have the $33 million plus roughly $5 million-$6 million that we already had in hand. We were roughly in the $40 million range and I want to thank the donors that made those initial pledges because that was extremely important to get this resource mobilization initiative underway. Specifically, I would like to highlight the role that the Netherlands has played in not only making a significant contribution, but in the continued outreach to other member states to support. Germany, which has made a very significant contribution. The United Kingdom, European Union, Qatar, Sweden, Norway, Finland, France, Switzerland, and Luxemberg have all made [pledges or] contributions that have carried us to this point. And, most recently, both the United States as well as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have pledged an additional $10 million each, which gets us to about the $60 million threshold of the initial $80 million that we need to raise to start the operation.
Our discussions with other donors for the second stage are well underway. So we’re optimistic that we’ll raise the funding for both stages in an appropriate time. But let’s focus on where we are today and how we can close the current gap. And that’s really what I want to highlight because we’re launching a social media fundraising campaign that will open tomorrow [14 June]. It’s important that we get the word out to the public that we really need to get this funding going. So, we do have for the [emergency operation] about a $20 million gap and we really need to raise that as soon as possible. We’re still in a good period for the operation, but by the time we get to October, November, the environment to carry out the operation becomes more difficult. More importantly, it’s because of the nature of the winds and currents that increase the chances that this vessel, which is old and decaying, will break up. That would be the highest time of risk in in fact. So, we really want to get this going quickly. We’re trying to get to this $80 million figure by the end of this month, it’s doable, but it’s going to take a push and that’s why we’re calling on the public to help us to cross the finish line to get that first $80 million in place. $20 million is really not much when you look at the overall cost that this catastrophe would have. If indeed there were a spill, the estimates that we’ve received on the cleanup alone would be $20 billion. A $20 million additional investment today to save $20 billion seems like a very easy business case to make. A return of $1,000 on every dollar invested. But that $20 billion is just the cleanup cost. It doesn’t count the other costs that will affect the region. The disruption to international shipping would have a major cost – costing huge amounts on a daily basis. We saw that with the recent incident of the Ever Given when it ran aground – how that impacted. That potential is there. If there’s sufficient pollution in the shipping lanes that could have a significant impact. It will certainly have a significant impact on the ecosystems. The Red Sea is known for its pristine environments, which would no longer be pristine after such a spill. The reefs and the mangroves across the Red Sea could be affected. It might take as much as 25 years to restock the fisheries. Any country along the Red Sea could be affected. It would depend on the currents and winds at the time of the spill. That would determine which countries, but that means all countries are currently at risk. Tourism on the Red Sea would be affected. Desalination plants would be affected. It would affect not only the Arabian peninsula coastline of the Sed Sea, but also the African coastline. But of course, Yemen, currently in conflict, would be the most affected. Fishing communities would be devastated with maybe as many as 200,000 jobs wiped out overnight. This industry supports over 2 million people, directly or indirectly. Whole families would be exposed to pollutants. Millions of people would be forced to breathe more polluted air. The ports of Hudeidah and Saleef would be closed. These are the ports that supply the majority of Yemenis with food, whether commercial or humanitarian assistance, but also fuel and other life-saving commodities. 17 million Yemenis are already uncertain where their next meal will come from, even in the current circumstances with the ports open. There’s too much at stake to allow this to happen. And we’re so close. We just need to bridge that gap and we can start this operation. As I said earlier, we need about $144 million to carry the whole operation through. We need $80 million to start it, to get the emergency operation done, and then we’ll work on the long-term replacement capacity. As I mentioned at the beginning, the political will is there. We reconfirm that periodically. They’re anxious in fact that we start. We don’t see any real obstacle to move ahead from that front. We just need the funding, as I keep saying. We’re close, but we're not there. Every day that goes by is another day that we take a risk, a chance that this vessel will break up and the catastrophe that I described will unfold.
We need to take action. As I mentioned earlier, as we get into October, November, December, the odds of that happening will be significantly higher. So we’re running out of time. That’s why today I’m announcing a social media fundraising campaign to help us close the gap. We’re asking the global public and not just member states – the global public to crowdfund a quarter of the remaining gap. That would be $5 million for this emergency operation. $5 million is an ambitious goal for this kind of campaign, but, given the stakes, I think it is one that we should strive for. Importantly, every dollar that the public puts forward in this operation sends a message to all other member states and private companies, foundations that have not yet contributed or could contribute that they also need to act now before it’s too late. The campaign will be located on the UN website at un.org/StopRedSeaSpill.
That’s fairly obvious. It will be hosted by the global United Nations website. Or it will also be accessible through the UN Foundation where there is a donation page hosted. So you can either access the donations through the global UN website or go directly to the UN Foundation and make your contribution directly there. I’m basically appealing to the public as well as member states to help us close this gap, start this operation, and save a catastrophe that is not just a probability or possibility, but a certainty if we do not act. It’s not only a question of when. It’s not a question of if. Let’s get it done now, if we can. Thank you very much for your time, your attention and your support. Thank you.     For further information, please contact: Russell Geekie, Senior Communications Advisor to the Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, geekie@org

The Hague, 11 May 2022 – The Government of the Netherlands and the United Nations co-hosted a pledging event in The Hague today where donors pledged US$33 million in new funding for the UN-coordinated operational plan to address the threat of a major oil spill from the FSO Safer. There is now $40 million available for the operation, which includes previously committed funds. The decaying oil tanker is moored off the coast of Yemen and holds four times the amount of oil spilled by the Exxon Valdez. It could break apart or explode at any time. The conference marked the start in the effort to raise the $144 million that the plan requires, including $80 million for an emergency operation to transfer the oil to a safe temporary vessel. Also critical to the plan’s success is the installation of a long-term replacement capacity.  “Today has been an important step forward in eliminating the threat posed by the FSO Safer. In today’s pledging event, we managed to collect a sizeable amount. We will continue to support the UN in the month of May to gather the remaining funds needed. Many countries are showing great interest to join the effort. I am hopeful we will get there,” said Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Netherlands Liesje Schreinemacher. The Netherlands pledged almost $8 million. The other donors signing pledging commitments were Germany, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Qatar, Sweden, Norway, Finland, France, Switzerland and Luxembourg. The result of a major spill would be a humanitarian and environmental catastrophe and cost the region tens of billions of dollars in cleanup and economic costs. More than 200,000 Yemenis in the fishing industry could lose their livelihoods overnight, tourism would be affected as far away as Egypt and shipping could be disrupted through the Bab al-Mandab straight and the Suez canal. The environmental damage in the Red Sea and its coastlines would be severe. Minister of Foreign Trade of the Netherlands Wopke Hoekstra said: “Together, we can prevent one of the largest environmental disasters in history and save lives. Cleaning up a disaster caused by the FSO Safer would cost an estimated $20 billion. Preventing it will cost only $144 million. It’s a very simple business case. But it does require us to act.” “We are grateful to the donors that committed funding today at very short notice and look forward to receiving further commitments from those that have not yet pledged. When we have the funding, the work can begin,” said David Gressly, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen. “Today marks a strong launch of our efforts to ensure the project’s success, including outreach to the private sector. We need to work quickly to get the remaining funds to start the four-month operation in the weather window we have ahead of us,” The planned operation comprises the installation of a replacement vessel or equivalent capacity and the emergency operation to transfer the oil to a safe temporary vessel. The plan would cover the salaries of a crew to maintain the leased temporary vessel until the long-term solution is implemented. “The timing and funding are both critical. If we do not receive sufficient funding urgently, the weather window to transfer the oil will close. By October, high winds and volatile currents make the operation more dangerous and increase the risk of the ship breaking up,” said Auke Lootsma, UNDP Yemen Resident Representative. Background for editors In September, the United Nations’ senior management instructed Mr. Gressly to provide UN system-wide leadership on the FSO Safer and coordinate all efforts to mitigate the threat. He continues to engage in discussions with a wide range of stakeholders on the operational plan to resolve the threat while supporting work to strengthen contingency plans in the event of a catastrophic oil leak. Constructed in 1976 as an oil tanker and converted a decade later to be a floating storage facility for oil, the FSO Safer is moored about 4.8 nautical miles off the coast of Hodeidah governorate. The 376-metre-long vessel contains more than one million barrels of light crude oil – four times the amount spilled by the Exxon Valdez. With no maintenance operations undertaken on the Safer since 2015 due to the conflict, its structural integrity has significantly deteriorated and the vessel is at imminent risk of spilling oil due to leakages or an explosion. A significant spill would quickly surpass national capacity and resources to mount an effective spill response. The result would be catastrophic, devastating the Yemen coast, destroying livelihoods and likely forcing a closure of the ports of Al Hodeidah and As Salif - which are essential for the importation of commercial imports and life-saving humanitarian assistance. Depending on the season and prevailing wind and currents, the environmental impact would also affect Saudi Arabia, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia, and could disrupt vital shipping through the Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Red Sea. For further information, please contact: United Nations Russell Geekie, Senior Communications Advisor to the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator geekie@un.org  Government of the Netherlands Spokespersons: Tessa van Staden, tessa-van.staden@minbuza.nl, and Mina Goesjenova, mina.goesjenova@minbuza.nl  

The project aims at supporting the local health service providers and local communities in increasing access to primary and secondary health facilities. Through restoring the physical infrastructure of the targeted health facilities, providing medical equipment and furniture, and building the capacity of the health staff, UNOPS contributes to the health sector in Yemen for improved healthcare services to the targeted populations. Mr. Marc Engelhardt, Head of the Middle East Department at KfW Development Bank highlighted the strong partnership between KfW and UNOPS in the implementation of the project. He appreciated that over 130,000 patients will benefit annually from the improved health infrastructure and thanked UNOPS for the successful completion of the rehabilitation works. Mr. Muhammad Usman Akram, UNOPS Director of Amman Multi-Country Office, said: “The handover of Al Sabeen hospital is another milestone intervention in support of the health sector in Yemen. Thanks to our partnership with the Government of Germany and the KfW, Al Sabeen hospital is better equipped and in a much better position to continue the provision of critical healthcare to Yemeni mothers and their children.” “Strengthening Resilience through Enhancing Health Service Facilities in Yemen” project is funded by the German Government through KfW. The project aims at strengthening the resilience of the supported health facilities and the targeted communities by providing sustainable access to healthcare services. The project is aligned with the Health Cluster objectives of the 2019 Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan, mainly, to enhance local referral health system by supporting selected tertiary health facilities in targeted communities; increase access to targeted communities to primary and secondary health care services; and, help ensure that health facilities in priority districts are able to respond to epidemics and outbreaks. The project supports Sustainable Development Goal 3 - “Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages”.   For Press Inquiries, please contact: Anwar Abu Sakieneh, Communications Specialist (UNOPS) UNOPS Multi-country Office in Amman: +962 6 5902122 or +962 7 9902 6315 AnwarAB@unops.org

Sana’a, Yemen – The European Union (EU) and Sweden's International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) have contributed new funding totaling US$ 49.37 million to boost resilience, livelihoods, food security, and climate adaptation in Yemen. The recently signed agreement to support the third phase of the Supporting Resilient Livelihoods, Food Security and Climate Adaption in Yemen - Joint Programme (ERRY III) covers a three-year period starting in March 2022. The programme aims to enhance capacity of crisis-affected communities to manage local risks and shocks for increased resilience and self-reliance. Specifically, it will target the most vulnerable community groups, including women, the unemployed, youth, marginalized minority groups, internally displaced persons (IDPs) and stressed host communities. “The European Union believes in the future of Yemen and in the ability of Yemenis to build resilience and pathways towards sustainable development even during the ongoing conflict,” said the EU Ambassador to Yemen Gabriel Munuera Viñals. “With the additional funding, the European Union contributes to investing in Yemen’s future while supporting people in Yemen to address immediate challenges.” The programme will potentially reach nearly 847,000 direct beneficiaries and will be implemented jointly by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Labour Organization (ILO), and the World Food Programme (WFP). “It is critical to support communities throughout Yemen in local development to strengthen their resilience towards external shocks such as the conflict and the economic crisis,” said the Head of the Regional Development Cooperation at the Sweden Embassy in Amman, Ms. Maria Selin. Through ERRY III, we will work with UNDP, FAO, ILO, and WFP so that women, youth, and men have enhanced opportunities to access sustainable livelihoods and job opportunities through climate sensitive programming.” Considering the social and cultural barriers rural women face in Yemen, the ERRY III activities will also focus on strengthening women's economic empowerment, including women at all stages of implementation, and addressing the specific needs and opportunities for women. “The new phase of the ERRY joint programme builds upon the success of Phase II, a successful three-year programme that was also funded by EU and Sida. The programme significantly enhanced resilience, food security, and livelihood for over 740,000 vulnerable people in Abyan, Hajjah, Hodiedah, Lahj, and Taiz governorates,” explains Auke Lootsma, UNDP Resident Representative in Yemen. “These services are critical to reduce vulnerability and strengthened resilience of crisis affected rural communities in Yemen through the creation of sustainable livelihoods and improving access to basic services.” The UN agencies will work together to ensure that community institutions are strengthened, and their capacity is developed around the following focus areas: a. Gender sensitive resilience planning, conflict resolution, and social cohesion. b. Vulnerable communities’ benefit from equal access to clean energy solutions, environmental protection, and climate adaptive capacity in sustainable manner. c. Sustainable livelihoods of women and men created through improved production, food security and income opportunities.   Press Contacts UNDP Yemen | Leanne Rios, Team Lead: Communications and Advocacy Leanne.rios@undp.org