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The Sustainable Development Goals in Yemen
The Sustainable Development Goals are a global call to action to end poverty, protect the earth’s environment and climate, and ensure that people everywhere can enjoy peace and prosperity. These are the goals the UN is working on in Yemen:
Press Release
09 March 2023
UN Press Release - Major Step Forward on FSO Safer
Purchase of vessel is a critical development in operation to remove more than a million barrels of oil from
decaying supertanker off Yemen’s Red Sea coast. Funding still urgently needed to complete safe removal of oil New York, 9 March 2023 – the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) signed an agreement with Euronav today to secure the purchase of a Very Large Crude Carrier – or ‘VLCC’ – as part of the UN-coordinated operation to remove more than a million barrels of oil from a decaying tanker off Yemen’s Red Sea coast that threatens a humanitarian and environmental catastrophe.
The replacement vessel is now in drydock for modifications and regular maintenance before sailing to the FSO Safer, moored about nine kilometers off Yemen’s Ras Isa peninsula. It is expected to arrive in early May for the operation.
The FSO Safer has not been maintained since 2015 because of the conflict in Yemen. It has decayed to the point where there is an imminent risk it could explode or break apart, which would have disastrous effects on the region.
A major spill would devastate fishing communities on Yemen’s Red Sea coast, likely wiping out 200,000 livelihoods instantly. Whole communities would be exposed to life-threatening toxins. Highly polluted air would affect millions.
It would also result in the closure of the ports of Hodeidah and Saleef – which are essential to bring food, fuel and life-saving supplies into Yemen, where 17 million people need food assistance. Desalination plants would close, cutting off a water source for millions of people. Oil from the Safer could reach the African coast and affect any country on the Red Sea. The environmental impact on coral reefs life-supporting mangroves and other marine life would be severe. Fish stocks would take 25 years to recover.
The cost of cleanup alone is estimated at $20 billion. Disruptions to shipping through the Bab al-Mandab strait to the Suez Canal could cost billions more in global trade losses every day, as happened after the Ever Given grounded in the Canal in 2021.
The UN Development Programme (UNDP), which is implementing the high-risk operation as part of the UN-coordinated initiative, is contracting marine salvage company SMIT to safely remove the oil and prepare the Safer for towing to a green scrapping yard.
UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner said, “The purchase of this suitable vessel by UNDP marks the beginning of the operational phase of the UN-coordinated plan to safely remove the oil from the Safer and avoid the risk of an environmental and humanitarian disaster on a massive scale. We must accept that this is a very challenging and complex operation. UNDP is working around the clock with experts from UN sister agencies including IMO, WFP and UNEP among others as well as international consultancies on maritime law, insurance and environmental impact to ensure that we are deploying the best possible expertise to successfully complete this operation.”
While the project to remove the oil has received significant international support, spiraling costs mostly related to the war in Ukraine that triggered a significant price increase in the market for suitable vessels to undertake the operation mean more money is still needed to complete the emergency phase of the plan. As of 7 March, the UN has raised $95 million, of which $75 million has been received. The total budget for the emergency phase of the project is $129 million.
From Sana’a, David Gressly, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, who has led on UN system-wide efforts on the Safer since September 2021, said, “UNDP’s purchase of the vessel is indeed a major step, made possible by the generosity of donors, the private sector and global citizens. The parties to the conflict continue to endorse the plan. Now we are into the operational phase and hopeful the oil will be removed from the Safer within the next three to four months. But we still urgently need funding to implement the plan and prevent disaster.”
To fill the budget gap, the UN is re-launching a crowdfunding appeal which saw thousands of individuals around the world contribute to the FSO Safer project in 2021. To learn more, visit www.un.org/StopRedSeaSpill. For more information
For the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office for Yemen: geekie@un.org, +1 347 654 0913
For the UN Development Programme: dylan.lowthian@undp.org +1 646 673 6350
decaying supertanker off Yemen’s Red Sea coast. Funding still urgently needed to complete safe removal of oil New York, 9 March 2023 – the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) signed an agreement with Euronav today to secure the purchase of a Very Large Crude Carrier – or ‘VLCC’ – as part of the UN-coordinated operation to remove more than a million barrels of oil from a decaying tanker off Yemen’s Red Sea coast that threatens a humanitarian and environmental catastrophe.
The replacement vessel is now in drydock for modifications and regular maintenance before sailing to the FSO Safer, moored about nine kilometers off Yemen’s Ras Isa peninsula. It is expected to arrive in early May for the operation.
The FSO Safer has not been maintained since 2015 because of the conflict in Yemen. It has decayed to the point where there is an imminent risk it could explode or break apart, which would have disastrous effects on the region.
A major spill would devastate fishing communities on Yemen’s Red Sea coast, likely wiping out 200,000 livelihoods instantly. Whole communities would be exposed to life-threatening toxins. Highly polluted air would affect millions.
It would also result in the closure of the ports of Hodeidah and Saleef – which are essential to bring food, fuel and life-saving supplies into Yemen, where 17 million people need food assistance. Desalination plants would close, cutting off a water source for millions of people. Oil from the Safer could reach the African coast and affect any country on the Red Sea. The environmental impact on coral reefs life-supporting mangroves and other marine life would be severe. Fish stocks would take 25 years to recover.
The cost of cleanup alone is estimated at $20 billion. Disruptions to shipping through the Bab al-Mandab strait to the Suez Canal could cost billions more in global trade losses every day, as happened after the Ever Given grounded in the Canal in 2021.
The UN Development Programme (UNDP), which is implementing the high-risk operation as part of the UN-coordinated initiative, is contracting marine salvage company SMIT to safely remove the oil and prepare the Safer for towing to a green scrapping yard.
UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner said, “The purchase of this suitable vessel by UNDP marks the beginning of the operational phase of the UN-coordinated plan to safely remove the oil from the Safer and avoid the risk of an environmental and humanitarian disaster on a massive scale. We must accept that this is a very challenging and complex operation. UNDP is working around the clock with experts from UN sister agencies including IMO, WFP and UNEP among others as well as international consultancies on maritime law, insurance and environmental impact to ensure that we are deploying the best possible expertise to successfully complete this operation.”
While the project to remove the oil has received significant international support, spiraling costs mostly related to the war in Ukraine that triggered a significant price increase in the market for suitable vessels to undertake the operation mean more money is still needed to complete the emergency phase of the plan. As of 7 March, the UN has raised $95 million, of which $75 million has been received. The total budget for the emergency phase of the project is $129 million.
From Sana’a, David Gressly, the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, who has led on UN system-wide efforts on the Safer since September 2021, said, “UNDP’s purchase of the vessel is indeed a major step, made possible by the generosity of donors, the private sector and global citizens. The parties to the conflict continue to endorse the plan. Now we are into the operational phase and hopeful the oil will be removed from the Safer within the next three to four months. But we still urgently need funding to implement the plan and prevent disaster.”
To fill the budget gap, the UN is re-launching a crowdfunding appeal which saw thousands of individuals around the world contribute to the FSO Safer project in 2021. To learn more, visit www.un.org/StopRedSeaSpill. For more information
For the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office for Yemen: geekie@un.org, +1 347 654 0913
For the UN Development Programme: dylan.lowthian@undp.org +1 646 673 6350
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Publication
10 May 2022
FSO SAFER UN-Coordinated Proposal Explainer March 16, 2023
Moored off the Red Sea coast of Yemen, the FSO Safer is a rapidly decaying supertanker holding four times the amount of oil the Exxon Valdez spilled. It could break up or explode at any time, unleashing a humanitarian and ecological catastrophe centered on a country already decimated by years of war. Such a spill would result in lasting environmental damage and profound economic costs across the region. A disruption in shipping through the Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Suez Canal would result in billions of dollars in trade losses every day.
Donors have generously pledged $95 million for the UN-coordinated plan to transfer the oil to a safe long-term replacement vessel. $77.5 million of the funds were received by December 2022. However, the prices to charter or purchase a suitable vessel to store the oil surged over the past six months, chiefly due to factors related to the war in Ukraine. On 9 March, the United Nations Development Programme signed an agreement to purchase a suitable replacement vessel, but further funding is still needed. If the funding gap of $34 million for the emergency phase of the operation is closed quickly, the work can begin in the second quarter of 2023.
Background Constructed in 1976 as a supertanker and converted a decade later to be a floating storage and offloading facility (FSO) for oil, the Safer is moored about 4.8 nautical miles off the coast of Hodeidah governorate in Yemen. The vessel holds an estimated 1.14 million barrels of light crude oil. Production, offloading and maintenance operations on the Safer were suspended in 2015 because of the war. The Safer’s structural integrity has significantly deteriorated. All assessments indicate that the vessel is beyond repair and at imminent risk of spilling oil. It could break up at any time – or explode because the systems required to pump inert gas into its tanks ceased functioning in 2017. A significant spill would surpass national capacity and resources to effectively respond. The costs of a major oil spill The cost of cleanup alone is estimated at $20 billion.
A major spill would devastate fishing communities on Yemen’s Red Sea coast. Half a million people working in the fishing industry there have 1.7 million dependents. Two hundred thousand livelihoods could be instantly wiped out. Whole communities would be exposed to life-threatening toxins.
A major oil spill could close the nearby ports of Hodeidah and Saleef – which are essential to bring in food, fuel and lifesaving supplies into a country where 17 million people are in need of food assistance. The environmental impact of a major spill on water, coral reefs, life-supporting mangroves and other sea life would be severe. Oil could reach the shores of Saudi Arabia, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia.
Desalination plants on the Red Sea coast could be closed, cutting off a water source for millions of people. The spill would also produce highly polluted air over a large area.
Vital shipping through the Bab al-Mandab Strait to the Suez Canal could be disrupted for an extended period, costing billions of dollars per day. Tourism would also suffer.
UN-coordinated plan to resolve the threat In September 2021, United Nations senior management instructed the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, David Gressly, to provide UN system-wide leadership on the FSO Safer and coordinate all efforts to prevent the threat and strengthen contingency plans in the event of a catastrophic oil spill. This followed earlier efforts in the highly politicized environment of the conflict. After discussions with relevant stakeholders, the United Nations produced a plan to prevent a spill by transferring the oil to a safe vessel and installing long-term replacement capacity for the Safer. The draft UN-coordinated plan was strongly supported by United Nations senior management in December 2021.
The UN has engaged closely with the Government of Yemen in Aden, which has regularly reiterated support for the initiative over the past year.
The Sana’a-based authorities, who control the area where the vessel is located, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the UN on 5 March 2022, establishing a framework for cooperation in which the Sana’a-based authorities committed to facilitating the success of the project. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is implementing this complex and high-risk project. The operation on the water comprises two phases: An emergency phase, during which a leading global salvage company will inspect the Safer and make it safe for the operation, transfer the oil into a replacement vessel, and ready the FSO Safer to be towed away; and The installation of a catenary anchor leg mooring (CALM) buoy to which the replacement VLCC will be connected as safe long-term replacement capacity for the Safer, and the towing and scrapping of the Safer. The most immediate danger of a spill will be prevented during the first phase – once the oil is transferred off the Safer.
In September 2022, the Government of Yemen in Aden and Sana’a authorities formally supported the long-term replacement solution proposed by the UN (a VLCC tethered to a CALM buoy system). The parties continue to express that they want the operation on the water to begin as soon as possible. The world is now closer than ever to preventing the catastrophe As of 19 February, donors have generously pledged $95 million (including more than $12 million from the private sector and $200,000 through a crowdfunding campaign), of which $77.5 million has been received.
Preparatory work for the operation began in September 2022 after $75 million had been pledged. Since then, UNDP has put in place world-renowned technical expertise to prepare for the implementation of the project, including a marine management consultancy firm, maritime legal firm, insurance and ship brokers and oil spill experts. UNDP is also at an advanced stage in contracting the salvage company to carry out the emergency operation. The company is already under contract to produce a detailed operational plan.
However, as the UN was gearing up for the project, the costs to purchase and lease VLCCs surged, chiefly due to factors related to the war in Ukraine. The cost to purchase a suitable VLCC is at least $20 million more than the original budget estimate.
On 9 March, UNDP signed an agreement to purchase a suitable vessel that will take on the oil, marking a major step towards starting the operation on the water. The very large crude carrier is in drydock for maintenance and modifications.
Donors remain keenly interested in the operation. Provided the current financial gap is bridged, the UN remains confident the work on the water can begin in the first half of 2023. The revised budget for the plan reflects the current market conditions As outlined in the UN’s initial plan in April 2022, the budget for the two-track operation was $144 million. While the adoption of the CALM buoy solution initially lowered the estimated budget, the rising prices of VLCCs and other factors pushed the working budget higher.
The current budget gap for the emergency phase of the operation is $34 million (against the $95 million that has effectively been raised).
The UN will continue to fundraise for any gap in the budget for the first phase of the operation and for the critical second phase. The UN is also considering internal means to bridge the financial gap. The United Nations thanks donors for the generous support We also thank the private sector, including the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers and the HSA Group, and the generous individuals that continue to contribute to the UN crowdfunding campaign for the plan. For further information, please contact:
Russell Geekie, Senior Communications Advisor to the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, geekie@un.org
+1 347 654 0913
For UN Development Programme: Dylan Lowthian, dylan.lowthian@undp.org +1 646 673 6350
Background Constructed in 1976 as a supertanker and converted a decade later to be a floating storage and offloading facility (FSO) for oil, the Safer is moored about 4.8 nautical miles off the coast of Hodeidah governorate in Yemen. The vessel holds an estimated 1.14 million barrels of light crude oil. Production, offloading and maintenance operations on the Safer were suspended in 2015 because of the war. The Safer’s structural integrity has significantly deteriorated. All assessments indicate that the vessel is beyond repair and at imminent risk of spilling oil. It could break up at any time – or explode because the systems required to pump inert gas into its tanks ceased functioning in 2017. A significant spill would surpass national capacity and resources to effectively respond. The costs of a major oil spill The cost of cleanup alone is estimated at $20 billion.
A major spill would devastate fishing communities on Yemen’s Red Sea coast. Half a million people working in the fishing industry there have 1.7 million dependents. Two hundred thousand livelihoods could be instantly wiped out. Whole communities would be exposed to life-threatening toxins.
A major oil spill could close the nearby ports of Hodeidah and Saleef – which are essential to bring in food, fuel and lifesaving supplies into a country where 17 million people are in need of food assistance. The environmental impact of a major spill on water, coral reefs, life-supporting mangroves and other sea life would be severe. Oil could reach the shores of Saudi Arabia, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia.
Desalination plants on the Red Sea coast could be closed, cutting off a water source for millions of people. The spill would also produce highly polluted air over a large area.
Vital shipping through the Bab al-Mandab Strait to the Suez Canal could be disrupted for an extended period, costing billions of dollars per day. Tourism would also suffer.
UN-coordinated plan to resolve the threat In September 2021, United Nations senior management instructed the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, David Gressly, to provide UN system-wide leadership on the FSO Safer and coordinate all efforts to prevent the threat and strengthen contingency plans in the event of a catastrophic oil spill. This followed earlier efforts in the highly politicized environment of the conflict. After discussions with relevant stakeholders, the United Nations produced a plan to prevent a spill by transferring the oil to a safe vessel and installing long-term replacement capacity for the Safer. The draft UN-coordinated plan was strongly supported by United Nations senior management in December 2021.
The UN has engaged closely with the Government of Yemen in Aden, which has regularly reiterated support for the initiative over the past year.
The Sana’a-based authorities, who control the area where the vessel is located, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the UN on 5 March 2022, establishing a framework for cooperation in which the Sana’a-based authorities committed to facilitating the success of the project. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is implementing this complex and high-risk project. The operation on the water comprises two phases: An emergency phase, during which a leading global salvage company will inspect the Safer and make it safe for the operation, transfer the oil into a replacement vessel, and ready the FSO Safer to be towed away; and The installation of a catenary anchor leg mooring (CALM) buoy to which the replacement VLCC will be connected as safe long-term replacement capacity for the Safer, and the towing and scrapping of the Safer. The most immediate danger of a spill will be prevented during the first phase – once the oil is transferred off the Safer.
In September 2022, the Government of Yemen in Aden and Sana’a authorities formally supported the long-term replacement solution proposed by the UN (a VLCC tethered to a CALM buoy system). The parties continue to express that they want the operation on the water to begin as soon as possible. The world is now closer than ever to preventing the catastrophe As of 19 February, donors have generously pledged $95 million (including more than $12 million from the private sector and $200,000 through a crowdfunding campaign), of which $77.5 million has been received.
Preparatory work for the operation began in September 2022 after $75 million had been pledged. Since then, UNDP has put in place world-renowned technical expertise to prepare for the implementation of the project, including a marine management consultancy firm, maritime legal firm, insurance and ship brokers and oil spill experts. UNDP is also at an advanced stage in contracting the salvage company to carry out the emergency operation. The company is already under contract to produce a detailed operational plan.
However, as the UN was gearing up for the project, the costs to purchase and lease VLCCs surged, chiefly due to factors related to the war in Ukraine. The cost to purchase a suitable VLCC is at least $20 million more than the original budget estimate.
On 9 March, UNDP signed an agreement to purchase a suitable vessel that will take on the oil, marking a major step towards starting the operation on the water. The very large crude carrier is in drydock for maintenance and modifications.
Donors remain keenly interested in the operation. Provided the current financial gap is bridged, the UN remains confident the work on the water can begin in the first half of 2023. The revised budget for the plan reflects the current market conditions As outlined in the UN’s initial plan in April 2022, the budget for the two-track operation was $144 million. While the adoption of the CALM buoy solution initially lowered the estimated budget, the rising prices of VLCCs and other factors pushed the working budget higher.
The current budget gap for the emergency phase of the operation is $34 million (against the $95 million that has effectively been raised).
The UN will continue to fundraise for any gap in the budget for the first phase of the operation and for the critical second phase. The UN is also considering internal means to bridge the financial gap. The United Nations thanks donors for the generous support We also thank the private sector, including the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers and the HSA Group, and the generous individuals that continue to contribute to the UN crowdfunding campaign for the plan. For further information, please contact:
Russell Geekie, Senior Communications Advisor to the UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, geekie@un.org
+1 347 654 0913
For UN Development Programme: Dylan Lowthian, dylan.lowthian@undp.org +1 646 673 6350
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Publication
26 October 2022
UNITED NATIONS YEMEN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT COOPERATION FRAMEWORK 2022 – 2024
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
UN global reform has elevated the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) to be “the most important instrument for planning and implementing UN development activities” in the country. It outlines the UN development system’s contributions to reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in an integrated way, with a commitment to leave no one behind, uphold human rights, Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE), and other international standards and obligations. The UNSDCF seeks to address the humanitarian, development and peace challenges in Yemen in an environment where key public institutions are fragmented, no national strategy exists, and where there has been no national budget since 2014. The Yemen UNSDCF outlines the UN’s collective priorities and development objectives to be reached jointly in the next three years 2022-2024 as part of an ongoing and longer- term vision for resilience building and forging of a pathway to peace.
Yemen is a country in conflict. The priorities of this UNSDCF are derived from the analysis of the impacts of this ongoing crisis on the people of Yemen, and the needs and opportunities as outlined in the UN’s Common Country Analysis (CCA) conducted in 2021.
The UN has prioritized four pillars that resonate with the SDG priorities of people, peace, planet and prosperity that aim, as a matter of urgency, to improve people’s lives in Yemen and build resilience that is equitable, inclusive, people-centred, gender responsive and human rights based, through outcomes that: 1. Increase food security, improving livelihood options, and job creation 2. Preserve inclusive, effective and efficient national and local development systems strengthening 3. Drive inclusive economic structural transformation 4. Build social services, social protection, and inclusion for all
The theory of change is driven by an expectation that by 2024 the impact for all people of all ages in Yemen affected by conflict, forced displacement and living in poverty in all its dimensions will experience change in the quality of their lives. This will be possible through increased food security and nutrition, livelihood options and job creation; preserved national and local development and systems strengthening; inclusive economic structural transformation and the building of social services, social protection and inclusion for all. Food security and nutrition, and sustainable and resilient livelihoods and environmental stability will be realized through effective food production and diversified food and nutrition security; and through sustainable climate sensitive environmental management. Rights-based good governance and inclusive gender sensitive improved public services and rule of law will be possible as a result of accountable, inclusive and transparent institutions and systems, as well as the building of trusted justice systems. Increased income security and decent work for women, youth and vulnerable populations will be realised through micro and macro-economic development and job creation. Strengthened social protection and basic social support service delivery focused on support to marginalized groups, and strengthening women and youth leadership in decision making processes will be supported through the preservation of social protection and expanded and effective social assistance and basic services.
The UNSDCF prioritises the population groups in Yemen that have the highest risk of being left behind due to the impact of conflict; economic, social, geographic or political exclusion; and marginalisation. Enacting the central transformative principle of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs, whilst challenging in the Yemen context, does provide the lens through which the UNSDCF targets the most vulnerable and prioritise Leaving No One Behind.
On the basis that some groups in Yemen bear the brunt of the conflict due to forced displacement, livelihood disruption, food insecurity, limited social safety nets, increased levels of poverty and poor-
quality housing, the CCA 2021 identifies the following population groups at the greatest risk of being left behind:
- Women and girls - 73 percent of those displaced in Yemen are women and girls, especially women of reproductive age and adolescent girls
- Children – 60 percent of those killed directly by conflict are children under five
- Youth and adolescents – an estimated 2 million school-age girls and boys are out of school as poverty, conflict, and lack of opportunities disrupt their education
- Internally displaced persons – more than 4 million IDPs with 172,000 newly displaced in 2020 and almost 160,000 in 2021
- Refugees, asylum seekers and migrants – Yemen hosts approximately 138,000 migrants and 140,000 refugees and asylum seekers
- Persons with disabilities – 4.5 million Yemenis have at least one disability
- Ethnic and religious minorities – It is estimated that Muhamasheen represent 10 percent of the population living in marginalised conditions
The UNSDCF is comprised of four chapters. Chapter One: explores Yemen’s progress towards the 2030 Agenda through a detailed analysis of the country context drawing on the 2021 CCA. Chapter Two: presents the theory of change generally and per outcome area. Chapter Three: outlines the UNSDCF’s implementation plan focused on the management structure, resources, links to country programming instruments and Yemen’s Business Operations Strategy. Chapter Four: highlights the process for CCA updates, Monitoring and Evaluation and Learning. The Results Framework presents the outcomes and key performance indicators for monitoring agreed targets utilizing verifiable data sets. Two annexes capture the legal basis for all UN entities engaged in the UNSDCF and the mandatory commitments to Harmonised Approaches to Cash Transfers (HACT)1.
The UNSDCF represents the UN’s understanding that continued engagement in Yemen requires an operational architecture under-pinned by the Business Operations Strategy (BOS) and an integrated set of achievable programming priorities. These two strategic approaches of the UN system strengthen and make more inclusive the country’s national and local governance structures, and mainstream the required responses to the economic and health consequences of COVID-19. They tackle food insecurity and nutrition as a matter of priority and integrate the promotion and advancement of gender equality and women’s and girl’s empowerment.
UN global reform has elevated the United Nations Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework (UNSDCF) to be “the most important instrument for planning and implementing UN development activities” in the country. It outlines the UN development system’s contributions to reach the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in an integrated way, with a commitment to leave no one behind, uphold human rights, Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment (GEWE), and other international standards and obligations. The UNSDCF seeks to address the humanitarian, development and peace challenges in Yemen in an environment where key public institutions are fragmented, no national strategy exists, and where there has been no national budget since 2014. The Yemen UNSDCF outlines the UN’s collective priorities and development objectives to be reached jointly in the next three years 2022-2024 as part of an ongoing and longer- term vision for resilience building and forging of a pathway to peace.
Yemen is a country in conflict. The priorities of this UNSDCF are derived from the analysis of the impacts of this ongoing crisis on the people of Yemen, and the needs and opportunities as outlined in the UN’s Common Country Analysis (CCA) conducted in 2021.
The UN has prioritized four pillars that resonate with the SDG priorities of people, peace, planet and prosperity that aim, as a matter of urgency, to improve people’s lives in Yemen and build resilience that is equitable, inclusive, people-centred, gender responsive and human rights based, through outcomes that: 1. Increase food security, improving livelihood options, and job creation 2. Preserve inclusive, effective and efficient national and local development systems strengthening 3. Drive inclusive economic structural transformation 4. Build social services, social protection, and inclusion for all
The theory of change is driven by an expectation that by 2024 the impact for all people of all ages in Yemen affected by conflict, forced displacement and living in poverty in all its dimensions will experience change in the quality of their lives. This will be possible through increased food security and nutrition, livelihood options and job creation; preserved national and local development and systems strengthening; inclusive economic structural transformation and the building of social services, social protection and inclusion for all. Food security and nutrition, and sustainable and resilient livelihoods and environmental stability will be realized through effective food production and diversified food and nutrition security; and through sustainable climate sensitive environmental management. Rights-based good governance and inclusive gender sensitive improved public services and rule of law will be possible as a result of accountable, inclusive and transparent institutions and systems, as well as the building of trusted justice systems. Increased income security and decent work for women, youth and vulnerable populations will be realised through micro and macro-economic development and job creation. Strengthened social protection and basic social support service delivery focused on support to marginalized groups, and strengthening women and youth leadership in decision making processes will be supported through the preservation of social protection and expanded and effective social assistance and basic services.
The UNSDCF prioritises the population groups in Yemen that have the highest risk of being left behind due to the impact of conflict; economic, social, geographic or political exclusion; and marginalisation. Enacting the central transformative principle of the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs, whilst challenging in the Yemen context, does provide the lens through which the UNSDCF targets the most vulnerable and prioritise Leaving No One Behind.
On the basis that some groups in Yemen bear the brunt of the conflict due to forced displacement, livelihood disruption, food insecurity, limited social safety nets, increased levels of poverty and poor-
quality housing, the CCA 2021 identifies the following population groups at the greatest risk of being left behind:
- Women and girls - 73 percent of those displaced in Yemen are women and girls, especially women of reproductive age and adolescent girls
- Children – 60 percent of those killed directly by conflict are children under five
- Youth and adolescents – an estimated 2 million school-age girls and boys are out of school as poverty, conflict, and lack of opportunities disrupt their education
- Internally displaced persons – more than 4 million IDPs with 172,000 newly displaced in 2020 and almost 160,000 in 2021
- Refugees, asylum seekers and migrants – Yemen hosts approximately 138,000 migrants and 140,000 refugees and asylum seekers
- Persons with disabilities – 4.5 million Yemenis have at least one disability
- Ethnic and religious minorities – It is estimated that Muhamasheen represent 10 percent of the population living in marginalised conditions
The UNSDCF is comprised of four chapters. Chapter One: explores Yemen’s progress towards the 2030 Agenda through a detailed analysis of the country context drawing on the 2021 CCA. Chapter Two: presents the theory of change generally and per outcome area. Chapter Three: outlines the UNSDCF’s implementation plan focused on the management structure, resources, links to country programming instruments and Yemen’s Business Operations Strategy. Chapter Four: highlights the process for CCA updates, Monitoring and Evaluation and Learning. The Results Framework presents the outcomes and key performance indicators for monitoring agreed targets utilizing verifiable data sets. Two annexes capture the legal basis for all UN entities engaged in the UNSDCF and the mandatory commitments to Harmonised Approaches to Cash Transfers (HACT)1.
The UNSDCF represents the UN’s understanding that continued engagement in Yemen requires an operational architecture under-pinned by the Business Operations Strategy (BOS) and an integrated set of achievable programming priorities. These two strategic approaches of the UN system strengthen and make more inclusive the country’s national and local governance structures, and mainstream the required responses to the economic and health consequences of COVID-19. They tackle food insecurity and nutrition as a matter of priority and integrate the promotion and advancement of gender equality and women’s and girl’s empowerment.
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Publication
14 February 2023
United Nations - The Nippon Foundation Strategic Needs Fellowship Programme
The Division for Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea of the Office of Legal Affairs of the United Nations (“OLA/DOALOS”), is now accepting applications for the 2023 session of the United Nations - The Nippon Foundation Strategic Needs Fellowship Programme.
The objective of the United Nations – The Nippon Foundation Strategic Needs Fellowship is to assist developing States, particularly least developed countries, small island developing States and landlocked developing countries to address identified critical needs in the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and related instruments, as well as Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 and other related SDGs. The Fellowship is targeted at Government officials with limited background in ocean affairs and the law of the sea who are filling key positions in their Administration and who are tasked to address the needs referred to above.
Selected Fellows participate in a four-month training programme based on a foundation curriculum, integrated by a highly customized individual curriculum developed in consultation with the nominating State, at OLA/DOALOS at United Nations Headquarters in New York.
To qualify, candidates must:
• Be between the ages of 25 and 40
• Possess at least a first-level university degree or equivalent
• Demonstrate an ability to undertake advanced academic research and studies
• Be from a developing State
• Be Government officials dealing directly with critical issues related to sustainable development of oceans and seas (e.g. the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; national and/or regional ocean policy; the establishment of maritime zones and/or the delimitation of maritime boundaries; coastal zone management; conservation and management of marine living resources; maritime transport and shipping; maritime security; the protection and preservation of the marine environment; and/or marine science).
It is intended that 11 Fellowships will be offered in 2023.
Additional information on the United Nations – The Nippon Foundation Strategic Needs Fellowship is available on the Fellowship website https://www.un.org/oceancapacity/content/unnf-strategic-fellowship.
The Fellowship website includes a detailed outline of the required qualifications, the application package, and further details on the Fellowship Programme. Candidates must complete the application package available by using the “APPLY NOW” button (https://www.un.org/oceancapacity/content/apply-now), including by transmitting the required documents to the following email address: doalos@un.org.
The deadline for submitting the complete application package is 24 March 2023. Applicants should familiarize themselves with the eligibility requirements and use only the application forms made available on the website to apply to the Programme. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.
Awards will be communicated individually to the successful candidates and then posted on the Fellowship website in the second half of May 2023. The Fellowship will take place between mid-August and mid-December 2023.
OLA/DOALOS would appreciate it if this notification could be widely disseminated through relevant networks to ensure a large and diverse pool of candidates. Nominating authorities are strongly encouraged to consider putting forward female candidates.
The objective of the United Nations – The Nippon Foundation Strategic Needs Fellowship is to assist developing States, particularly least developed countries, small island developing States and landlocked developing countries to address identified critical needs in the implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and related instruments, as well as Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 14 and other related SDGs. The Fellowship is targeted at Government officials with limited background in ocean affairs and the law of the sea who are filling key positions in their Administration and who are tasked to address the needs referred to above.
Selected Fellows participate in a four-month training programme based on a foundation curriculum, integrated by a highly customized individual curriculum developed in consultation with the nominating State, at OLA/DOALOS at United Nations Headquarters in New York.
To qualify, candidates must:
• Be between the ages of 25 and 40
• Possess at least a first-level university degree or equivalent
• Demonstrate an ability to undertake advanced academic research and studies
• Be from a developing State
• Be Government officials dealing directly with critical issues related to sustainable development of oceans and seas (e.g. the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development; national and/or regional ocean policy; the establishment of maritime zones and/or the delimitation of maritime boundaries; coastal zone management; conservation and management of marine living resources; maritime transport and shipping; maritime security; the protection and preservation of the marine environment; and/or marine science).
It is intended that 11 Fellowships will be offered in 2023.
Additional information on the United Nations – The Nippon Foundation Strategic Needs Fellowship is available on the Fellowship website https://www.un.org/oceancapacity/content/unnf-strategic-fellowship.
The Fellowship website includes a detailed outline of the required qualifications, the application package, and further details on the Fellowship Programme. Candidates must complete the application package available by using the “APPLY NOW” button (https://www.un.org/oceancapacity/content/apply-now), including by transmitting the required documents to the following email address: doalos@un.org.
The deadline for submitting the complete application package is 24 March 2023. Applicants should familiarize themselves with the eligibility requirements and use only the application forms made available on the website to apply to the Programme. Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.
Awards will be communicated individually to the successful candidates and then posted on the Fellowship website in the second half of May 2023. The Fellowship will take place between mid-August and mid-December 2023.
OLA/DOALOS would appreciate it if this notification could be widely disseminated through relevant networks to ensure a large and diverse pool of candidates. Nominating authorities are strongly encouraged to consider putting forward female candidates.
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Story
15 March 2023
Violence plagues women and girls amid Yemen’s relentless conflict
UNITED NATIONS/SANA’A – Rehman* was married off to an abusive man at age 15. “During our year of marriage, I lived a very hard life full of violence and abuse,” she recently told UNFPA in the governorate of Hajjah.
Child marriage is a coping mechanism that alarming numbers of Yemeni parents have turned to as they deal with ever-growing levels of precarity. With the country’s grinding conflict passing its 8-year mark, families face not only mass displacements but also a devastating economic crisis and the collapse of many vital social services and protection systems. Today, nearly two thirds of girls in Yemen are married before age 18.
But for Rehman, marriage did not secure long-term support or stability. Instead, as she and her husband fled the violence of the war, she endured the violence of her husband. Relief, ironically, came in the form of abandonment: “My husband decided to divorce me, saying he couldn’t afford to provide food for me after our displacement,” she said.
Conditions in Yemen are only worsening, with restrictions on women’s and girls’ freedom tightening in many places. In parts of Yemen’s north, for example, women are no longer able to work independently due to the mahram system that requires women to have a male guardian in order to travel.
Today, an estimated 12.6 million women are in need of life-saving reproductive health and protection services.
“The war in Yemen has left utter devastation in its wake, with stark consequences for women and girls,” said UNFPA Executive Director Dr. Natalia Kanem.
Gender discrimination costs lives
About three quarters of the 4.5 million people displaced in Yemen are women and children, and approximately 26 per cent of displaced households are headed by women. Yet discriminatory gender norms continue to hamper the ability of women to support themselves and their families, and in the case of the mahram system, it has limited the ability of women humanitarians to provide vital services and support.
An estimated 7.1 million women throughout Yemen require urgent access to services that prevent and address gender-based violence, yet these services are extremely limited or, in some places, completely absent.
Rehman was lucky; she learned about a UNFPA-supported safe space for women and girls at her displacement camp.
At the safe space, she received cash assistance and a referral to a health facility. “I am beginning to feel better,” she said.
“Soon I will enroll in a livelihood support programme at the safe space to learn a skill and start a new life free from violence and abuse.”
Reproductive health needs at critical levels
With the country’s health system in tatters, Yemen has one of the highest maternal death rates in the region. One Yemeni woman dies in childbirth every two hours from preventable causes.
Somaya,* 25, in Taizz, came close to being one of those women. She was six months pregnant when her husband cast her and their five children out of their home. To support the children, Somaya took a job doing farm work – hard manual labour that caused her health to deteriorate.
A doctor identified complications in her pregnancy and advised her to visit a women’s and girls’ safe space for support. There, she received financial support to receive obstetric care. Sadly, the pregnancy ended in a stillbirth, but Somaya was able to receive the medical and psychosocial care she needed to recover.
“I no longer have the feelings of extreme sadness and anxiety,” Somaya reported to UNFPA.
The obstetric care that likely saved Somaya’s life is widely unavailable in Yemen.
Fewer than half of births are assisted by skilled medical personnel, and only one in five of the health facilities that remain provide maternal and child health services.
UNFPA is the sole provider of life-saving reproductive health medicines in the country, but chronic underfunding is jeopardizing this care. Some 93 health facilities may have to close as the organization scrambles for funds.
Appeal underway
On 27 February, UNFPA appealed for $70 million to sustain its reproductive health and protection programmes for women and girls.
Despite its humanitarian operations in Yemen being persistently underfunded, UNFPA was able to reach more than 2.7 million women and girls in 2022. Supporters of that work included Canada, the Central Emergency Response Fund,Denmark, the European Union, Iceland, KSrelief, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Sweden, Switzerland., USAID’s Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance and Yemen Humanitarian Fund.
The aid environment for 2023 could prove more challenging than in the previous year. But the women and girls of Yemen must not be forgotten, Dr. Kanem said: “We need to act now to save lives, provide the essential support so urgently needed and offer a chance at a better future.”
*Names changed for privacy and protection
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Story
14 February 2023
YEMENI CLIMATE HEROINE, IMAN HADI, GOES TO COP 27
Climate change is a global threat and a vicious cycle. It contributes to food insecurity, hunger, and poverty – especially where people are already vulnerable. And vulnerabilities and risks are increased by climate-related disasters as they disrupt livelihoods, severely impact human rights, and endanger lives the world over.
Yemen’s already challenging humanitarian and development situation, characterized by socioeconomic deterioration, is even further threatened by climate change.
The country’s recurrent natural disasters and torrential rains brought on by climate change and high temperatures has caused significant drought and severe floods across the country. Recent years have seen increased levels of fatalities and destruction, and the spread of communicable diseases has been unprecedented. Coupled with severe damage to agricultural lands, this has adversely affected the economy and livelihoods – particularly in rural areas.
With Yemen’s protracted conflict, Yemenis’– especially women – have little means to adapt to climate change and respond to these recurring and new shocks. Women are often the most vulnerable to climate change with little to no access to resources such as water, energy, or capital.
But Iman Hadi and her micro-grid team of nine other women are quickly changing this reality in rural Yemen.
RURAL WOMEN CONTRIBUTE TO CLIMATE-RESILIENT COMMUNITIES
Little did Iman Hadi know how much her world would change when she and nine other women presented a project plan to the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) component of the Supporting Resilient Livelihoods and Food Security (ERRY) Joint Programme. They proposed operating and managing a solar micro-grid plant in Abs district, one of the most vulnerable areas located on front lines of the conflict in northern Yemen.
Over the past four years, they have successfully built up the first-ever private solar micro-grid station to provide radically cheaper and clean electricity for 53 low-income households in their community. This decentralized solar solution improved access to energy and reduced the impact of energy production on the already fragile natural environment.
Since the beginning of the project, it has reduced 34,560 kilograms of emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs). This is equivalent to 85,785 miles driven by an average gasoline-powered passenger vehicle or 38,238 pounds of coal burned. It has also contributed to improving livelihoods throughout the community as the grid both allows for the creation of jobs.
UNDP’s gender-sensitive business model allowed for removing the social, economic, and cultural obstacles that prevent women from participating in climate change adaptation measures.
COP27: INSPIRING OTHERS IN THE FACE OF ADVERSITY
After a tiresome four-day journey from her village, Iman finally reached Sharm El Sheikh to participate as a panelist in the United Nations Conference of the Parties on Climate Change (COP27). A dream she would have never imagined four short years ago.
Over three sessions in three different pavilions, Iman inspired hundreds with her story. Through it all, she remained humble, thinking of her fellow Yemeni women and specifically about how her team challenge the deep-rooted conservative traditions and stereotypes about women around establishing and managing their own businesses
She spoke about the pioneering role of women in confronting climate change and inspired other young leaders working on climate resilience and environmental protection. Seeing the bigger picture for a brighter future in Yemen, she noted that "Solar solutions could promote long-term adaptation in Yemen, generate sustainable energy, create livelihoods opportunities, and solve the climate risk issue.”
Iman also participated in a session in UNDP's pavilion discussing how gender, innovation, and technology can address the risks of climate change. “I sincerely hope that I conveyed the voice of all Yemeni women, not only mine.”
Despite economic, social, and environmental differences, Iman noted that one thing COP27 proved is that “we are all suffering from the same issues, especially the imminent risk of climate change. We must all take immediate action!”
FROM HUMBLE BEGINNINGS TO ENTREPRENEUR
In 2019, the forty-year-old Iman started her career as a manager of a limited-capacity solar micro-grid plant, hoping to help the many community members without electricity because of the lack of a national grid or the skyrocketing fuel prices. UNDP provided the team with the solar grids and training in business management and operations as well as the necessary specialty care such as battery maintenance.
The beginning was difficult, and Iman had to overcome numerous challenges – both financial and social. “The project was not easy to get off the ground,” explains Iman. “We went through a lot to establish this project because of the perspective Yemenis have on working women,” she indicated. But she was no stranger to difficult situations – like the other six million displaced Yemenis, Iman had to flee her home to avoid armed conflict. But, like many, she knew she wanted to re-establish a life for herself and her family. Iman had big dreams.
These dreams grew over time, as did Iman’s sense of obligation to her community. She continued to work harder and more diligently, and she very wisely invested her portion of the solar micro-grid’s earnings to expand her business. Iman’s dreams did not stop, and her resolve did not weaken as she continued to work on her project. She was confident that one day she would see her dreams translated into reality.
Today, Iman has expanded her business to include microloans to members of the community to start-up businesses, hire employees, and get back on track if needed. She has been able to change the landscape of her community one loan at a time – strengthening the economic situation in the community and bringing hope and dignity back to many in this frontline community.
What Iman did not expect was that she would also succeed in changing the traditional role and way the community views women. Before the solar micro-grid, the community and others were skeptical of the business, particularly that it was owned and operated by women. But through hard work, patience, perseverance and good business sense, Iman has become a well-respected and beloved pillar of the community. She has single handedly changed the image of women in rural Yemen.
So it stands to reason that, in 2020, Iman and the solar micro-grid business would be selected for the prestigious Ashden Award for Humanitarian Energy. Instead of diesel costing 42 cents an hour, solar energy costs only 2 cents, enabling the average person access. Cutting the cost of energy by 65 per cent, the solar microgrids offer an alternative, clean and renewable energy source that allows rural homes and businesses the ability to afford undisrupted electricity for hours.
Iman’s success did not stop there! Also in 2020, she was selected as one of the BBC’s 100 Most Influential Women in the world for promoting positive change, making a difference amid Yemen's volatile times, and delivering clean, low-impact electricity.
ERRY’S JOINT PROGRAMME ROLE TO CLIMATE ADAPTATION IN YEMEN
Before the conflict started in 2015, only 23 per cent of Yemenis had access to energy. The crisis has led to a deeper energy-related problem as fossil fuels continue to surge and embargos make it more difficult to obtain. Non-grid electrified rural households- accounting for 75 per cent of the total population - were using alternative lighting devices such as kerosene lamps (about 67 per cent) and liquefied petroleum gas (about 5 per cent) which have severe impacts on the environment.
Before the crisis, the cost of 20 litres of diesel was US$ 7; today it costs up to US$ 40, and is often hard to come by, even in stations. The UNDP programme has enabled communities’ access to affordable energy when there are no other viable solutions, by applying unique, low-cost, and sustainable solar microgrid solutions.
Under the European Union (EU) and Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida) funded project, ERRY JP, UNDP has supported a range of decentralized off-grid initiatives. This includes, for example, the installation of solar power systems for a range of public services like schools, healthcare centres, and public offices while also working to help develop business models that enable income generation for rural Yemenis.
To date, more than 196 public services have been solarized since 2019, benefitting tens of thousands and allowing public services to resume critical functions and duties like during the cholera outbreak and the COVID-19 pandemic. Under the project, UNDP has created the market and demand for access to cheaper and cleaner energy amongst rural and poor, conflict-effected communities.
The ERRY JP is implementing the third phase of the project, aiming to strengthen resilience of the population in the most vulnerable governorates in Yemen. The US$ 49 million joint programme supports the creation of sustainable livelihoods opportunities through enhancing food security, employment, community assets restoration, social basic services, agricultural value chains, gender equality and women’s economic empowerment as well as access to renewable energy.
The three-year programme (March 2022 - Feb 2025) is funded by European Union (EU) and Sweden and is jointly implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), International Labour Organization (ILO) and the World Food Programme (WFP).
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Story
14 February 2023
PAVING ‘DEATH ROAD’ IN HAJJAH
Vehicles and trucks loaded with food and water move carefully and slowly along the steep, unpaved mountain road that connects the Ahem Market to all the Al-Sudha villages in Kushar district, Hajjah governorate.
The plight of people living in Bani-Shahr has been exacerbated year after year, especially during rainy seasons when this road becomes impassable. The road is the sole lifeline of the surrounding citizens, but transporting food, water, and other essential items has become extremely complicated. This time-consuming and costly path forced people to resort to using donkeys to traverse the difficult terrains.
People in Al-Sirat called this road the ‘Death Road’. Its ruggedness and the absence of gabions has put people’s lives in danger and caused many tragic accidents that have claimed numerous lives.
“The road in the Al-Sirat area connects more than five villages; however, the rugged route has had a serious impact on residents, resulting in tremendous problems. People struggle to transport food, obtain water, and access medical services, and they incur enormous costs for transportation like sending patients to hospitals. Because of this, people in the area lead a miserable life,” says Ahmed Al-Shehri, 43, a resident of the area.
TRAGIC ACCIDENTS
Many lives have been lost because of having to drive a very dangerous slope called ‘Al-Sirat’. All those who managed to traverse the road are said to have escaped the grip of death. Al-Shehri recalls three tragic traffic accidents that resulted in many causalities – one of which killed four people from the same family while transferring a patient to a hospital.
The danger and suffering intensify during the rainy season as the road becomes impassable, leaving these villages completely isolated. “The road gets blocked when it rains, so people resort to using donkeys to transport food and other necessities,” says Al-Shehri. “Some have left their villages because they cannot obtain necessities. For example, the price of one water tanker has reached YER 60,000 (USD 100),” he indicates.
POSITIVE IMPACT
After residents’ pleas for a solution, the Public Works Project (PWP) performed a project study and meet with residents to determine their priority needs. “The two parties agreed to pave the rocky parts of the road, estimated at 11 kilometres long,” says Hamdi Sallam, PWP’s Assistant Director of the Sub-District in Hajjah.
“This project not only helped citizens overcome difficulties, but it also created local job opportunities. They gained skills and expertise from participating in the road construction, paving, etc.,” he explains. “People’s persistence and cooperation to overcome difficulties have contributed to completing the first phase of the project within four months.”
“The road paving project reduced transportation costs, facilitated goods transport, and contributed to absorbing manpower,” said Ahmed.
Al-Sirat Road was a nightmare for people, especially car and truck drivers. "Before PWP intervened and paved the roads and built gabions, people really suffered. The situation has now improved, and the road has become safer," he adds, hoping this project puts an end to the long-standing suffering experienced by people in this area.
NAVIGATING RISKS
Highlighting the impact of paving the road, Ahmed Qarou, a 39-year-old resident of Bani-Shahr area indicates that "The project has changed the situation for the better and helped improve transportation, particularly transporting patients who require urgent medical care.” He notes that "people worry less after the implementation of the project and that the costs of transporting basic materials and water were reduced”. He explains that community members can now also save money to buy other necessities.
Beneficiaries felt very happy after repairing the road; the project has improved infrastructure and created job opportunities for several citizens.
According to the Assistant Director of PWP Sub-District, the community still faces additional challenges as not all the roadwork has been completed. "The 11-kilometre-long project requires a second phase that must eventually be completed," he explains. "The first phase of the project has had a positive and multifaceted impact on people, reducing the cost of transporting food, water and other essentials.” He indicates that “after paving this road, passengers’ transportation fees went down from YER 5,000 (US$ 8) to YER 2,000 (US$ 3.5).”
The Al-Sirat Road paving project – funded and supported by the World Bank’s IDA in partnership with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and implemented by PWP – has alleviated community suffering in Bani-Shahr Sub-District, Koshar. The success of this project comprises several aspects, improving the living standards of many families. It is a key factor in absorbing manpower as well as reducing personal and commercial transportation costs.
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Story
12 February 2023
A Mother’s Life Saved During Childbirth
Ahlam, 37, was pregnant with her ninth child when her family was displaced from Rawan District to Al Jufinah Camp in Marib Governorate in Yemen. Her body was exhausted from childbirth, displacement and lack of food during her ninth pregnancy.
“Most nights, I was in great pain, I could barely move or speak to my husband,” tells Ahlam.
A horrifying experience Ahlam’s complications worsened closer to the delivery, threatening her life and that of her unborn child. “I knew something did not feel right, but I had very few options. I had no savings after I lost my job from displacement” stated Ahlam’s husband. With no money to take Ahlam to a hospital, her husband resorted to an unskilled midwife to deliver at home. Ahlam managed to deliver safely, but she began to bleed profusely. The midwife could not control the bleeding and rushed her to the nearest health clinic. At the clinic, she was provided with first aid, but the clinic was not equipped to provide the urgent treatment Ahlam required. “I felt the clock stopped ticking when the clinic nurse told me they could not do anything to help my wife. It was horrifying to imagine my wife was going to die,” tells the husband. Ahlam’s body was turning blue, but the husband had no money left to afford the transportation to the nearest hospital. With a stroke of luck, a visitor at the clinic offered to take Ahlam to Al Shaheed Mohammaed Ha’il Health Centre – a health facility supported by KSrelief to provide emergency obstetric care services. A window of hope Ahlam arrived at Al Shaheed Mohammed Hai’l Health Centre unconscious, in a terrible state of shock. The medical team rushed Ahlam to the operating theatre in the hope of saving her life. “I thought she was gone once I saw her. I put my finger to check her heartbeat, it was fading away,” told a nurse. Ahlam had suffered a uterine rupture following the home delivery. The doctors could not stop the bleeding. Her blood levels had dropped drastically. A decision was taken to remove her womb in the hope of stabilizing the bleeding. “After six hours of surgery, when I saw her condition stabilize, I was overjoyed. The sound of the heartbeat monitor sounded like victory music,” said the gynecologist. A Life Won Ahlam was later admitted to the intensive care unit for five days, where her health gradually began to improve. “I felt like I died the moment I fainted,” tells Ahlam after recovering. When I slowly opened my eyes, I thought I was opening them in my heaven, but I could hear the heartbeat monitor, then I knew I had made it out alive.” Yemen has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the Arab region with one women dying every two hours during childbirth, another 20 suffer injuries, infections or disabilities that are preventable; while six out of 10 births take place without a skilled birth attendant. Support from KSrelief is helping to increase access to reproductive health services for women and girls, with support to 15 health facilities and 50 community midwives in southern parts of the country. This is enabling pregnant women to deliver safely, while equipping health facilities to tackle other reproductive health complications such as that faced by Ahlam.
A horrifying experience Ahlam’s complications worsened closer to the delivery, threatening her life and that of her unborn child. “I knew something did not feel right, but I had very few options. I had no savings after I lost my job from displacement” stated Ahlam’s husband. With no money to take Ahlam to a hospital, her husband resorted to an unskilled midwife to deliver at home. Ahlam managed to deliver safely, but she began to bleed profusely. The midwife could not control the bleeding and rushed her to the nearest health clinic. At the clinic, she was provided with first aid, but the clinic was not equipped to provide the urgent treatment Ahlam required. “I felt the clock stopped ticking when the clinic nurse told me they could not do anything to help my wife. It was horrifying to imagine my wife was going to die,” tells the husband. Ahlam’s body was turning blue, but the husband had no money left to afford the transportation to the nearest hospital. With a stroke of luck, a visitor at the clinic offered to take Ahlam to Al Shaheed Mohammaed Ha’il Health Centre – a health facility supported by KSrelief to provide emergency obstetric care services. A window of hope Ahlam arrived at Al Shaheed Mohammed Hai’l Health Centre unconscious, in a terrible state of shock. The medical team rushed Ahlam to the operating theatre in the hope of saving her life. “I thought she was gone once I saw her. I put my finger to check her heartbeat, it was fading away,” told a nurse. Ahlam had suffered a uterine rupture following the home delivery. The doctors could not stop the bleeding. Her blood levels had dropped drastically. A decision was taken to remove her womb in the hope of stabilizing the bleeding. “After six hours of surgery, when I saw her condition stabilize, I was overjoyed. The sound of the heartbeat monitor sounded like victory music,” said the gynecologist. A Life Won Ahlam was later admitted to the intensive care unit for five days, where her health gradually began to improve. “I felt like I died the moment I fainted,” tells Ahlam after recovering. When I slowly opened my eyes, I thought I was opening them in my heaven, but I could hear the heartbeat monitor, then I knew I had made it out alive.” Yemen has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the Arab region with one women dying every two hours during childbirth, another 20 suffer injuries, infections or disabilities that are preventable; while six out of 10 births take place without a skilled birth attendant. Support from KSrelief is helping to increase access to reproductive health services for women and girls, with support to 15 health facilities and 50 community midwives in southern parts of the country. This is enabling pregnant women to deliver safely, while equipping health facilities to tackle other reproductive health complications such as that faced by Ahlam.
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Story
10 March 2023
SAFE PASSAGE HOME FOR TWO WOMEN STRANDED IN WAR-TORN YEMEN
When she heard from her neighbours that other people from her community were making higher incomes in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), she decided to depart from home with dreams of earning enough to buy a house for her family.
Tens of thousands of migrants travel from the Horn of Africa, mainly Ethiopia and Somalia, to Yemen each year. Most migrants take this journey to escape destitution and hope to find better economic opportunities in Gulf countries, mainly KSA.
Their journeys are facilitated by smuggling networks who convince migrants they are just a few steps away from a better life. Instead, they are met with extreme hardship and violence on their journeys.
“At the beach in Somalia, smugglers crammed us into unseaworthy boats that took us across the Gulf of Aden to conflict-affected Yemen. There were nearly a hundred people on the boat. In the middle of the sea, we had to take the water out with our hands to avoid drowning,” recalled Abeba.
Abeba was one of the few who made it to shore alive. She managed to come up with the additional money smugglers asked her for to make her way to Sa’dah, a city on the border of Yemen and KSA.
There, she stayed with her sister who was living there while she waited to travel onward. One day, a missile hit their house and her life was changed forever.
Abeba lost her sister in the attack. Her own injuries put her in a coma in the hospital for many months. A relative brought her from Sa’dah to Sana’a and did his best to take care of her needs.
He quickly realized he could not care for her alone and came to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) for help. IOM’s health team received her at a hospital in Sana’a and covered the cost of her treatment in the hospital.
The Organization later secured a safe place for Abeba to stay in a home in Sana’a where she received additional medical treatment and psychological support.
“I lost my sister on this journey, and I was burned and wounded in this attack. My journey has been terrible, and I want to go home,” said Abeba.
From the onset of this journey, migrants are prone to risks such as starvation, drowning, violence and exploitation at the hands of smugglers and traffickers.
Like Abeba, Etenesh left Ethiopia in pursuit of a better life, but was abused and exploited on her journey.
“I was beaten by smugglers in Djibouti when I could not pay them. Another smuggler then offered to pay for my trip if I married him,” explained Etenesh, an 18-year-old Ethiopian woman.
“Once we reached Yemeni shores, I was already pregnant. My husband left me without food or money. I walked for weeks to reach northern Yemen.”
In her third month of pregnancy, Etenesh changed her mind and decided to turn around and head back south to Sana’a.
"In Sana’a, I lived with people in the Oromo community. I couldn't work because of my pregnancy and no one accepted me. The last woman I stayed with helped me give birth, but she did not have enough money to care for me after, so she took me to IOM,” continued Etenesh.
“I couldn’t tell my family that I got married. I just sent them my daughter's photo. My father called me and cried. He blamed himself that he couldn’t provide me with the money I needed when I needed it.”
Abeba and Etenesh both decided they wanted to go home and were able to return to Ethiopia on an IOM Voluntary Humanitarian Return (VHR) flight from Sana’a in October.
Thousands of other migrants in Yemen remain stranded in major hubs of Aden, Ma’rib, Sana’a and Sa’dah. Many of them sleep on the streets and struggle to secure the food and water necessary for their survival.
IOM-supported facilities in Aden and Sana’a help stranded migrants with nowhere to go – giving them a safe roof over their heads, daily meals, medical care, psychosocial support and information on safe migration.
The centers that hosted Abeba and Etenesh are funded by the European Union, US State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) and the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief) while IOM’s health response to migrants is supported by the Governments of Germany and Finland.
IOM’s VHR assistance to migrants who wish to go home is supported with funding from PRM and KSR.
“I am very happy to return to my country. My life will improve now. I will warn all those who plan to come here because I do not want anyone to experience the harsh reality that I have been through.” Abeba added.
IOM's support will continue after migrants arrive back home in Ethiopia. All returnees will be accommodated at the IOM Transit Centre in Addis Ababa, where further medical, psychiatric and psychosocial support will be given to those in need.
Since the beginning of 2022, IOM has recorded more than 67,500 migrant arrivals in Yemen.
* Names were changed.
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Press Release
27 February 2023
THE SECRETARY-GENERAL -- REMARKS AT HIGH-LEVEL PLEDGING EVENT FOR THE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN YEMEN
I thank the Governments of Sweden and Switzerland for again co-hosting this conference, and I thank all of you for your solidarity with the people of Yemen.
We ended last year with a measure of hope for the future of Yemen.
After years of death, displacement, destruction, starvation, and suffering, the truce delivered real dividends for people.
Civilian flights resumed from Sanaa; vital supplies arrived through the port of Hudaydah.
But the truce lapsed though after only six months.
Yes, key provisions have remained in place.
But the economy is in enormous difficulties.
Basic services risk to collapse.
And humanitarian needs continue to soar, while access is constrained, and funding perennially falls short.
Today, more than 21 million people – two in three Yemeni children, women, and men – need assistance and protection.
Pause and reflect for a moment what this staggering figure means.
The daily struggle for survival.
Parents unable to feed their children.
Women and girls too afraid to walk to school or even venture outside.
Families losing whatever hope they had left to ever return home.
Excellencies,
I am acutely aware that humanitarian needs worldwide are the highest they have ever been.
And I know that resources are stretched thin.
But I also know that your support can be the difference between life and death.
Today, we are appealing for $4.3 billion to support 17.3 million of the most vulnerable people in Yemen.
This will enable us to sustain vital operations that have proven their worth.
Last year, almost 11 million people received life-saving assistance – from food and clean water to shelter, protection, and education.
Thanks to this assistance – as well as the truce and other factors – two million fewer people suffered acute hunger.
And the number of people living on the brink of famine fell from over 150,000 to virtually zero.
But these gains remain fragile.
If support dries up now, aid agencies will be forced to scale back or suspend programming, at terrible human cost.
Excellencies,
Beyond sustained support, our humanitarian colleagues and partners need sustained access to people in need.
Bureaucratic impediments, interference, movement restrictions – particularly in Houthi-controlled areas – make it that much harder to reach affected populations.
Even worse, aid workers themselves are increasingly coming under attack.
I call on all parties to the conflict to facilitate the safe, rapid, and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief to all civilians in need, in line with obligations under international humanitarian law.
Humanitarians – including female Yemeni aid workers – must be able to carry out their work safely, independently, rapidly, and without hindrance or arbitrary restrictions.
Excellencies,
This marks the seventh time in seven years that we had to convene a pledging conference for the people of Yemen.
The people of Yemen deserve our support. But more than that, they deserve a credible path out of perpetual conflict and a chance to rebuild their communities and country.
Humanitarian aid is a band aid. It saves lives, but it cannot resolve the conflict itself.
We have a real opportunity this year to change Yemen’s trajectory and move towards peace.
By renewing and expanding the truce.
By advancing the political process facilitated by my Special Envoy.
And through sustained investments at scale in Yemen’s economy to restore basic services and build long-term resilience.
Excellencies,
The international community has the power and the means to end this crisis. And it begins by funding our appeal fully and committing to disbursing funds quickly. And allow me a very personal observation. When I was High Commissioner for Refugees, I visited Yemen several times – and I have been from Saada to Aden, from East to West. And I will never forget the enormous generosity of the Yemeni people. At the time, even with all the problems, with all the difficulties, Yemenis were receiving Somali refugees in big numbers, coming to the coast, and they were granting to all of them prima facie refugee status. I don’t know many developed countries in the world able to give prima facie refugee status to Somali refugees. This extraordinary generosity needs to be matched by our own solidarity with Yemeni people. And so, together, let us at long last turn the tide of suffering. Let us give hope to the people of Yemen. Shukran.
The international community has the power and the means to end this crisis. And it begins by funding our appeal fully and committing to disbursing funds quickly. And allow me a very personal observation. When I was High Commissioner for Refugees, I visited Yemen several times – and I have been from Saada to Aden, from East to West. And I will never forget the enormous generosity of the Yemeni people. At the time, even with all the problems, with all the difficulties, Yemenis were receiving Somali refugees in big numbers, coming to the coast, and they were granting to all of them prima facie refugee status. I don’t know many developed countries in the world able to give prima facie refugee status to Somali refugees. This extraordinary generosity needs to be matched by our own solidarity with Yemeni people. And so, together, let us at long last turn the tide of suffering. Let us give hope to the people of Yemen. Shukran.
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Press Release
27 February 2023
Yemen’s health crisis: WHO calls for increased funding to save millions of Yemenis
“Yemen requires urgent and robust support from international donors and other partners to effectively avert the potential collapse of its health system,” said Dr. Adham Abdel Moneim Ismail, WHO Representative in Yemen. “New funding in the amount of US$392 million is required by Yemen’s health sector to ensure that overstretched health facilities can continue providing even most basic services to 12.9 million most vulnerable people.”
In 2022, international funding pledges enabled WHO and 44 Health Cluster partners (including 4 other UN agencies, 39 international and local NGOs, and Yemen’s Ministry of Public Health and Population) to deliver medical equipment, supplies, trainings and other support to hospitals and health facilities that provided a wide range of vital and often lifesaving services to nearly 7.8 million Yemenis. Nevertheless, this level of funding fell far short of addressing identified and urgent health needs of some 12.6 million persons, effectively limiting assistance to only 7.8 million of them.
Increased funding urgently needed
“To date in 2023, funds pledged to the WHO-led Health Cluster equals only 3.5 percent of the US$392 million required to provide even most basic services to the 12.9 million most vulnerable Yemenis targeted by this year’s United Nations Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP) for Yemen,” said Dr. Adham Abdel Moneim Ismail. “They include up to 540,000 children under age five who are otherwise facing severe acute malnutrition (SAM), with direct risk of death.”
“Unless and until this massive funding gap is reversed, we will not be able to sustain our health emergency interventions in Yemen. We therefore call upon donors to continue to support our efforts to provide essential and lifesaving health services to the Yemeni people,” Dr. Adham Abdel Moneim said.
Yemen requires continuing strong support from the international donor community to deliver a minimum health service package that prioritizes access to primary health care services by
vulnerable population groups, especially in remote and conflict-affected districts of Yemen where these services are most needed.
This minimum service package entails health interventions and continuum of services prioritized at each level of care – from prevention and diagnosis to treatment and rehabilitation – in order to:
maintain even low levels of immunization coverage against recurring and fast-spreading outbreaks of communicable diseases including COVID-19, measles, diphtheria and the vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2);
sustain and strengthen local capacities to detect, assess, and contain vector-borne and water-borne diseases including malaria, dengue fever, and cholera;
ensure adequate nutrition surveillance and continuation of life-saving medical and nutrition care for Yemeni infants and children, especially those suffering from severe acute malnutrition (SAM) with medical complications;
continue deliveries of essential fuel, oxygen, medicines, and water, sanitation and hygiene for services (WASH) for infection prevention and control to functioning/targeted health facilities country-wide; and
prevent the potential collapse of Yemen’s health system, which will otherwise be unable to reach some 39.5 percent of the population.
“Tomorrow’s high-level pledging event for the humanitarian crisis in Yemen comes at a crucial moment to show the world’s commitment to assisting millions of Yemenis who are in distress and suffering from diseases, malnutrition, and trauma,” Dr. Adham Abdel Moneim added.
Underfunding of the Health Cluster in Yemen in 2023 (serving 4,812 health facilities, 276 hospitals and specialized centres, 1,199 health centres, and 3,337 health units) will result in:
Up to 1,000 unsupported health facilities;
10 million persons including 7.9 million children without needed access to health services;
1.1 million children with acute malnutrition facing deteriorating health or death; and
2.9 million women of reproductive age lacking maternal, child, and reproductive services.
Note to the editors
Worsening health situation and WHO’s response across Yemen
Nearly nine years of conflict has left over two thirds of Yemen’s population (21.6 million people) in present need of humanitarian assistance. An estimated 4.5 million people are internally displaced. Endemic violence, a deteriorating economy, mounting food insecurity and recurring disease outbreaks have all but collapsed the country’s health system. Across Yemen currently, 46 percent of all health facilities are only partially functioning or completely out of service due to shortages of staff, funds, electricity, medicines, supplies, and equipment.
In 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) provided life-saving medical and healthcare services to 12.6 million Yemenis – 62 percent of last year’s Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP).
The World Health Organization (WHO) is sustaining an integrated response in these priority areas: 1) coordinating the national Health Cluster; 2) keeping therapeutic feeding centres (TFCs) operational; 3) strengthening disease surveillance; 4) responding to all infectious disease outbreaks; 5) supporting health care facilities and services; 6) controlling vector-borne, water-borne, and neglected tropical diseases; 7) fighting chronic diseases including diabetes, renal diseases, and cancer; 8) maintaining water, sanitation and hygiene services (WASH) to strengthening infection prevention and control measures in hospitals; 9) supporting and improving maternal and newborn health care; and 10) responding to a neglected mental health crisis.
WHO follows an integrated and sustainable health approach focused on ensuring continuous access to health for all vulnerable people, while also strengthening the capacities and efficiencies of the national health system and Ministry of Public Health and Population (MoPHP) in Yemen with sustainable solutions.
These solutions include but are not limited to the rehabilitation of health facilities; the establishment of units and laboratories that the Yemeni health system lacks; the establishment of a disease outbreak surveillance system, a health information management system, and much more.
________________________________________
For further information, contact:
Tarik Jasarevic
Media Relations
World Health Organization
Mobile: +41 793 676 214
Tel: +41 22 791 5099 e-mail: jasarevict@who.int Kevin Cook Senior Communications Advisor WHO-Yemen Country Office Mobile: 01-727-377-0871 e-mail: cookkev@who.int
Media Relations
World Health Organization
Mobile: +41 793 676 214
Tel: +41 22 791 5099 e-mail: jasarevict@who.int Kevin Cook Senior Communications Advisor WHO-Yemen Country Office Mobile: 01-727-377-0871 e-mail: cookkev@who.int
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Press Release
19 January 2023
The ILO and Yemen’s development fund pledge to further promote decent work for the most vulnerable
SANAA (ILO News) - The International Labour Organisation (ILO) and Yemen’s Social Fund for Development (SFD) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to increase collaboration on promoting decent work in the country.
The agreement, signed by the ILO’s Regional Director for Arab States Ruba Jaradat and SFD Managing Director Abdullah Al-Dailami, aims to formalize joint work by the two agencies in key areas to foster job creation and gender inclusion and to generate labour market data.
“The ILO already has a long history of successful collaboration with Yemen’s Social Fund for Development, and we are delighted to enter into this new partnership with the SFD in order to promote decent work for some of the country’s most vulnerable communities,” said ILO Regional Director Jaradat. “We will jointly focus on generating much-needed employment opportunities, as well as reliable data on Yemen’s labour market in order to guide the development of robust and effective employment strategies and plans.”
"It is our pleasure to launch a new phase of technical cooperation between the Social Fund for Development and the ILO in several areas of social development,” said SFD Managing Director al-Dailami. “The cooperation will focus on enhancing decent work opportunities, especially for women, as well as enhancing occupational safety and health, vocational training and community contracting. It will include updating and refining relevant work manuals which will enable both parties to use SFD's rich experience and ILO's standards for benefiting vulnerable populations and poverty alleviation actors at the national and international level."
Future joint activities under the new agreement are expected to include conducting a labour force survey in Yemen in collaboration with other relevant authorities, and developing social protection schemes for public works programmes. Furthermore, activities will focus on supporting the SFD in integrating Employment-Intensive Investment Programme (EIIP) approaches into its existing cash-for-work or cash-for-assistance projects, as well as into SFD guidelines and tools, including those relating to Occupational Safety and Health. It will also build the business and management capacities of women community contractors and increase their participation in SFD projects. EIIP approaches aim to create short-term decent jobs through projects that create assets, renovate and rehabilitate infrastructure systems, and promote environmental sustainability.
At the outset of January 2023, the ILO and SFD entered into a new cooperation area to enhance the working skills and employability of more than 600 vulnerable Yemeni men and women, to enable them to better cope with the crisis and enhance their resilience.
Prior to that, the two organizations worked on promoting an entrepreneurship culture among Yemeni youth and women, building the capacity of national institutions and training service providers in business development, microfinance and self-employment initiatives.
The new phase of cooperation ushered in by the MoU will end in December 2023.
“The ILO already has a long history of successful collaboration with Yemen’s Social Fund for Development, and we are delighted to enter into this new partnership with the SFD in order to promote decent work for some of the country’s most vulnerable communities,” said ILO Regional Director Jaradat. “We will jointly focus on generating much-needed employment opportunities, as well as reliable data on Yemen’s labour market in order to guide the development of robust and effective employment strategies and plans.”
"It is our pleasure to launch a new phase of technical cooperation between the Social Fund for Development and the ILO in several areas of social development,” said SFD Managing Director al-Dailami. “The cooperation will focus on enhancing decent work opportunities, especially for women, as well as enhancing occupational safety and health, vocational training and community contracting. It will include updating and refining relevant work manuals which will enable both parties to use SFD's rich experience and ILO's standards for benefiting vulnerable populations and poverty alleviation actors at the national and international level."
Future joint activities under the new agreement are expected to include conducting a labour force survey in Yemen in collaboration with other relevant authorities, and developing social protection schemes for public works programmes. Furthermore, activities will focus on supporting the SFD in integrating Employment-Intensive Investment Programme (EIIP) approaches into its existing cash-for-work or cash-for-assistance projects, as well as into SFD guidelines and tools, including those relating to Occupational Safety and Health. It will also build the business and management capacities of women community contractors and increase their participation in SFD projects. EIIP approaches aim to create short-term decent jobs through projects that create assets, renovate and rehabilitate infrastructure systems, and promote environmental sustainability.
At the outset of January 2023, the ILO and SFD entered into a new cooperation area to enhance the working skills and employability of more than 600 vulnerable Yemeni men and women, to enable them to better cope with the crisis and enhance their resilience.
Prior to that, the two organizations worked on promoting an entrepreneurship culture among Yemeni youth and women, building the capacity of national institutions and training service providers in business development, microfinance and self-employment initiatives.
The new phase of cooperation ushered in by the MoU will end in December 2023.
1 of 5
Press Release
01 December 2022
One-fifty houses are handed over under the “Adequate Housing” project in Aden
Aden, Yemen, 29 November 2022 – Aiming to improve the living conditions of families in Aden, Yemen, UN-Habitat, in partnership with the Saudi Development and Reconstruction Programme for Yemen (SDRPY) and Alwaleed Philanthropies (AP), rehabilitated the houses of 150 families in the last two years.
The houses were handed over in a ceremony attended by Eng. Ali Ahmed Hassan, the Deputy Minister of Public Works and Highways, Eng. Ahmed Al Madkhali, Head of SDPYR Aden Office, Erfan Ali, UN-Habitat Regional Representative for the Arab States, and Diego Zorrilla, Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator.
“The handover of 150 houses today under the rehabilitation project returns the smile and hope of our citizens. We hope for the acceleration of implementing future phases to alleviate the suffering of our citizens,” Eng. Ali Ahmed Hassan stated in the ceremony.
The “Adequate Housing” project aims at improving the living conditions of low-income families in Aden, Yemen, through ensuring that their housing is safe, secure and designed to resist hazards.
"The developmental and economic support, through SDRPY, comes under direct guidance and care by the Custodian of the two Holy Mosques King Salman Bin Abdulaziz and His Royal Highness, the crown prince, with constant follow up by the Programme Director, Ambassador Mohamed Bin Saeed Al-Jaber, to improve the lives of the Yemeni people,” Eng. Ahmed Madkhali said. “The project is a product of a partnership between SDRPY, UN-Habitat and AP, following extensive efforts to improve the lives of our Yemeni brothers and sisters and to improve the living conditions of low-income Yemeni families.”
Over 4,000 people are set to benefit from this project after the rehabilitation of a targeted number of 600 low-income housing units in Aden.
“Rehabilitation of damaged houses allows Yemenis women, men and children of all ages to be as independent as possible in everyday activities, enabling participation in education, work, recreation, and meaningful life roles, such as taking care of family,” Dr. Erfan Ali commented.
The project also aims to enhance the capacity of Yemeni engineers and provide unemployed youth with vocational training. A partnership with the University of Aden resulted in the training of forty engineers from the Ministry of Public Works and Highways in the area of project management for construction.
Vocational training on skills such as carpentry and electrical installation is also provided for unemployed youth from targeted districts.
SDRPY have previously implemented 224 initiatives and projects throughout Yemeni governorates, focusing on 7 main areas. Education, health, water, energy, transportation, agriculture, fisheries and capacity building for governmental entities, in addition to development programmes.
Alwaleed Philanthropies
Over four decades, Alwaleed Philanthropies has supported and spent more than 4.4 billion dollars on social welfare and initiated more than 1000 projects in over +189 countries, managed by 10 Saudi female members, reaching more than 1 billion beneficiaries around the world, regardless of gender, race, or religion. Alwaleed Philanthropies collaborates with a range of philanthropic, governmental, and nongovernmental to combat poverty, empower women and youth, develop communities, provide disaster relief, and create cultural understanding through education. It seeks to build bridges for a more compassionate, tolerant, and accepting world.
UN-Habitat
UN-Habitat works in over 90 countries supporting people in cities and human settlements for a better urban future. Working with governments and local partners, its high impact projects combine world-class expertise and local knowledge to deliver timely and targeted solutions. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development includes a dedicated Goal on cities, SDG 11 – to make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.
www.unhabitat.org
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Press Release
19 October 2022
FAO Yemen Marks World Food Day with Pledge to Support Efficient, Inclusive, Resilient and Sustainable Agrifood Systems
The event is one in a series with others scheduled for Sana’a, Taiz and Mukalla within the coming few days. This year’s World Food Day is celebrated under the theme: Leave No One Behind and today’s event bore testimony to this as it was attended by various people including staff from FAO and MIAF, farmers, pastoralists, agro-pastoralists, beekeepers and fisher folks.
The FAO Representative in Yemen, Dr Hussein Gadain, in a message that was screened at the venue, said this year’s World Food Day comes at a time when the world faces several challenges including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, conflicts, climate change and rising food prices.
“Our aim is to work with farmers who dedicate time and energy to produce food, the livestock owners, the fisher folks, the poultry breeders, the market sellers and all the people who play a part to ensure that food is in our plates. We work with all and Leave No One Behind.
“We work to reduce malnutrition and food insecurity in Yemen through efficient, inclusive, resilient, and sustainable agrifood systems. We are committed to ensure better nutrition and food security, which is linked to sustainable production and decent livelihoods,” said Dr Gadain.
The FAO representative added that FAO is implementing bold, scaled, and collaborative actions.
“These actions are significantly improving food security conditions of rural families affected by the conflict and climate change shocks. We are building a sustainable environment where everyone, everywhere in Yemen, will have regular access to enough nutritious foods,” added Dr Gadain.
The venue was a hive of activity as farmers, pastoralists, agro-pastoralists, beekeepers and fisher folks were proudly displaying their products and equipment. These products and equipment are a result of their participation in some FAO interventions. These include sprayers to manage and control desert locust and drip irrigation equipment. Livestock farmers were also displaying tools and equipment used in dairy processing and animal fattening.
There were pheromone traps on display and these are used in the management of the ferocious fall armyworm (FAW). Also, on display were systems that ensure availability of near real time data in support of early warning for early action. Beekeepers were also displaying their products, showing the recent interventions in the honey value chain.
The products on exhibition represent the wide array of the emergency, resilience, and development-focused interventions implemented by FAO in Yemen. These interventions are made possible through the generous support of our donors and partners.
End
Contact:
Ali Al-Ashwal
Senior Communication & Outreach Analyst
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Sana'a - Republic of Yemen
Tel: +967-1-432681/2 Ext: 48
Mobile: +967 739955525
Email: ali.alashwal@fao.org
Leonard Makombe
Emergency Outreach and Reporting Specialist
Email: Leonard.Makombe@fao.org
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations Sana'a - Republic of Yemen
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