Lighting
In Yemen, the tragedy continues for millions of children, women and men
The war in Yemen has hit the population hard for almost nine years.
NGOs and UN humanitarian agencies are sounding the alarm about the fate of civilian populations and the challenges faced by the actors who come to their aid.
A little girl bringing back filled water bottles to a displaced persons camp near Sanaa in Yemen, March 25, 2022. © KHALED ABDULLAH/REUTERS
By: Anne Bernas Follow
Advertisement
Read more
“
Yemen depends almost entirely on food and medical imports, which are transported largely through the port of Hodeida and Aden
.
However, with growing tensions in the Red Sea, humanitarian organizations are finding it increasingly difficult to bring in medicines, essential to the survival of populations, while supply costs have more than doubled in a few weeks.
We are almost out of stock of medicines and, with the current instability, we are unable to guarantee that our stocks will be replenished within a reasonable time frame.
This situation, if it were to continue, could have dramatic consequences.
»
Anne Garella, director of operations for Action
Against Hunger
in the Middle East, is sounding the alarm on the situation in Yemen.
For its part, Unicef is trying to reassure: the
tensions in the Red Sea
and the raids on the Houthis in Yemen are not hindering its humanitarian actions on the ground.
Fortunately.
Because the country will enter its tenth year of war and the situation remains catastrophic.
The poorest state on the Arabian Peninsula, Yemen has been plunged for nine years into a war opposing the Houthi rebels to government forces supported since 2015 by a coalition led by Saudi Arabia, and notably including the United Arab Emirates.
In April 2022, a truce negotiated by the UN came into force, which expired last October but which is still roughly respected, especially since last December a new ceasefire was put into effect. place.
Both sides also agreed to the start of a peace process to end the conflict, according to the United Nations.
Unicef provides more than 350,000 Yemeni children throughout the country with micronutrients against malnutrition.
©UNICEF/YPN-Alaa Noman
“
The statistics on Yemen are staggering
”
Yet the economic situation continues to deteriorate, food insecurity is increasing, and recurring epidemics have brought Yemen's health system to the brink of collapse.
As for children, they are prey to dramatic health, food and educational problems.
“
The statistics on Yemen are staggering,
” says Peter Hawkins, Unicef representative in Yemen, a country which is currently experiencing the most serious humanitarian crisis in the world
.
On the ground of this forgotten conflict, many NGOs are at work to try to get the country back on track, because more than 18 million Yemenis are still in need, or 50% of the population.
More than 11,000 children were killed or seriously injured and more than 4,000 of them were recruited and used by the belligerents.
In the country, a child dies from preventable causes every ten minutes, notes the United Nations Refugee Agency.
According to the World Food Program (WFP), around 6.1 million people are on the verge of starvation.
But there are also encouraging signs since the infant mortality rate has, for example, decreased by 23%.
Unicef also provides more than 350,000 children throughout the country with micronutrients against malnutrition, vaccinates millions of children each year against measles and polio and provides them with psychological, human and material support. at several hospitals in the country, sets up systems providing access to drinking water for more than 6 million people, etc.
“
You should know that an undernourished baby, if not treated quickly, risks, if he survives, experiencing serious health problems throughout his adult life
,” warns Joséphine Ippe, head of nutrition at Unicef.
Special 🎞️📽️: Yemeni photographer documents his journey to film six children suffering from severe acute #malnutrition in #Yemen.
Watch the full video here👉 https://t.co/wdP0eMzAH4#ForEveryChild, #nutrition pic.twitter.com/Li69GIdAS1
— UNICEF Yemen (@UNICEF_Yemen) March 7, 2024
Also read: Yemen: “The legacy of this conflict will be felt for generations”
Education, a crucial element for the future of the country
The health situation is alarming, but also that of the education system.
In Yemen, schools have not been spared from the prolonged conflict.
At least one in four educational establishments have been destroyed, damaged, or used for non-educational purposes.
For nine years, more than two million children who have been displaced and living in poverty have had difficulty accessing education;
in 2024, explains UNICEF, one child in four is still not in school.
However, the consequences for out-of-school children are disastrous, both for their present and their future.
“
In countries like Yemen, which has suffered from prolonged conflict since 2014, more and more families and children need to be sent to school
,” says Mona Ahmed, head of education at Unicef.
Since 2014, more and more families and children have been displaced within the country.
As children and families move from place to place, their access to education is difficult.
From one place to another, their access to education is interrupted.
Even when families prioritize their education, schools in host communities can struggle to accommodate the growing number of children who arrive and want to return to school.
The result is an increase in the number of out-of-school children across the country.
»
Unicef's ultimate objective is to ensure that these children have a fair and equitable chance of access to education and that they are able to integrate into society, that they are able to realize their potential in the future.
Unicef has so far supported 40,000 children through accelerated learning programmes.
“
The situation is difficult, but in Yemen, the situation is never easy, but we are doing everything to offer a future to these more than 18 million people in need
,” continues the representative of Unicef in Sanaa, Peter Hawkins.
In Yemen, seven out of ten people could not survive without humanitarian aid.
It is certain that if peace returned to happy Arabia after all these years of tragic conflict, the problems would be less difficult to resolve and the tragedy that millions of Yemenis have suffered for nine years could finally see the end of the tunnel.
Only a negotiated political settlement can allow the advent of a global and lasting solution to the conflict, insists the UN.
72 teachers were trained on life skills manual for 6 days to conduct life skills training for 3,483 #adolescents in 16 schools in Taizz & Al-Dhale'e, to enable them to improve their communication & problem-solving skills & enhance their wellbeing.
Thx @francediplo @franceonu pic.twitter.com/opVUFbOaPO
— UNICEF Yemen (@UNICEF_Yemen) March 6, 2024
Newsletter
Receive all the international news directly in your inbox
I subscribe
Follow all the international news by downloading the RFI application
Share :
Continue reading on the same themes:
Yemen
Humanitarian
Poverty
our selection