Statement by the Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen: USD 4.2 billion needed to provide life-saving assistance to 21.4 million people in Yemen in 2019

Sana’a – The United Nations and humanitarian partners launched on 18 February the 2019 Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan (YHRP) which seeks US$4.2 billion to provide lifesaving assistance to 21.4 million people this year. This is the largest consolidated humanitarian appeal for Yemen ever launched.

“Four years of continuous conflict has turned Yemen into the worst humanitarian crisis of our time,” said Ms. Lise Grande, Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen. “The level of suffering is shocking. Eighty per cent of the entire population—24.1 million people—requires some form of humanitarian assistance or protection. Ten million people are a step away from famine and starvation and seven million people are malnourished.”

“The largest humanitarian operation is underway in Yemen; millions of lives have been saved and hundreds of thousands of Yemeni families have been helped to survive,” said Ms. Grande. “Each month nearly ten million people are receiving food assistance and nutrition partners are helping to identify and cure a higher percentage of children suffering from severe acute malnutrition than in any comparable operation globally.”

“Last year, humanitarians were able to stem the largest cholera outbreak in modern history, reducing the number of new cases from one million the year before to 311,000,” said Ms. Grande.

“This year is going to be tough. This is why humanitarian partners are going to do everything possible to help civilians in Yemen survive violence, access food, and receive the nutrition, health, WASH, shelter, education and protection support they are entitled to under international humanitarian and human rights law,” said Ms. Grande.

“We are grateful to all of the donors who generously support this operation,” said Ms. Grande. “But this year humanitarians are going to need more funding than ever before. All us hope that 2019 is the year of peace for Yemen. If it is not, and the conflict continues, millions of innocent people will suffer, and many will die.”

The 2019 YHRP strategy revolves around five priority objectives: helping millions of people overcome hunger; reducing the outbreak of cholera and infectious diseases; promoting the dignity of displaced families; decreasing the risk of displacement and violence against civilians; and preserving the capacity of public sector institutions to deliver life-saving basic services.