SANA’A (AFP) – The World Food Programme said Wednesday it was “forced” to cut aid to Yemen due to lack of funds, and warned of a surge in hunger in the war-torn country.
“From January, eight million will receive a reduced food ration, while five million at immediate risk of slipping into famine conditions will remain on a full ration,” the United Nations agency said in a statement, adding that it was “running out of funds”.
“Every time we reduce the amount of food, we know that more people who are already hungry and food insecure will join the ranks of the millions who are starving,” said WFP Middle East and North Africa director Corinne Fleischer, according to the statement.
“But desperate times call for desperate measures and we have to stretch our limited resources and prioritize, focusing on people who are in the most critical state.”
WFP said that it needs $813 million to continue to help the most vulnerable in Yemen through May and $1.97 billion during 2022 to continue to deliver food assistance to families on the brink of famine.
The UN warned in March of a “death sentence” against Yemen after a donor conference yielded less than half the funds needed to prevent famine.
It had appealed for $3.85 billion to pay for urgently needed aid, but just $1.7 billion was offered at a virtual pledging conference co-hosted by Sweden and Switzerland.
More than half of Yemen’s 30 million population (16.2 million) face acute hunger, with half of the children under five (2.3 million) at risk of malnutrition.
The WFP has estimated that it needs $813 million to continue to help the most vulnerable in Yemen through May and $1.97 billion during 2022 to keep delivering food assistance to families on the brink of famine.
Saudi Arabia launched the devastating military aggression against its southern neighbor in March 2015 in collaboration with a number of its allied states and with arms and logistics support from the U.S. and several Western states.
The aim was to return to power the former Riyadh-backed regime and crush the popular Ansarullah movement which has been running state affairs in the absence of an effective government in Yemen.
The war has stopped well shy of all of its goals, despite killing tens of thousands of Yemenis and turning entire Yemen into the scene of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.