UNITED NATIONS, Feb 2 (NNN-AGENCIES) – UN aid programmes in embattled Yemen are running out of funds, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said, yesterday.
“As of Jan, almost two-thirds of major UN aid programmes had already been reduced or closed, due to funding gaps,” the office said. “Further cuts are expected in the coming months, unless additional support is urgently received.”
OCHA said in a release, food aid cuts come in the face of alarmingly high hunger rates. Next month, 11 million people will rely on reduced food rations, with only two million receiving full rations.
The office said, water and sanitation services might be cut in 15 major cities, affecting 4.6 million people. More than one million women and girls, will soon no longer have access to reproductive health and gender-based violence services.
Millions more people stand to lose access to other vital services, including essential health care, nutrition, shelter, cash assistance and education, OCHA said.
“More must be done in the long term, to reduce humanitarian needs, including through concerted efforts to stabilise Yemen’s economy,” the office said. “But in the meantime, urgent funding is essential, to maintain humanitarian operation and avoid sudden surge in people’s suffering.”
Yemen has 20.7 million people in need – out of a total population of about 30 million – with 16 million of them targeted for relief, requiring 3.85 billion U.S. dollars in funding, said OCHA’s 2022 humanitarian overview.
On Friday, the UN emergency relief coordinator, Martin Griffiths, authorised 20 million dollars from the global body’s Central Emergency Response Fund, for 270,000 people caught up in the effects of hostilities in Marib, al-Jawf and Hadramout.– NNN-AGENCIES
