SANAA (February 26, 2019) – Today, governments took a step to alleviate the suffering of millions of people who are victims of the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, by pledging US$ 2.6 billion so far. It is a long way from the US$ 4.2 billion needed to support an estimated 24 million people in Yemen – almost 80 percent of the population – who need humanitarian assistance in 2019, many of whom are hovering on the brink of famine.
CARE, Save the Children, Norwegian Refugee Council, and Oxfam welcome the support for humanitarian efforts, which are ensuring that Yemeni people have access to food, clean water, education and adequate health care, as well as treating women and children for malnourishment and helping them cope with the enormous stresses they face daily. We are ready to scale up our activities in Yemen and depend on donors for continued funding.
Yet financial support is not enough. We desperately need commitments from some of the very same countries present today to allow unconditional access for humanitarian assistance and commercial imports to all parts of the country. We want to hear world leaders promise to protect civilians and civilian infrastructure such as schools and hospitals, and to hold to account those who disregard international law.
The countries selling arms to warring parties in Yemen need to stop these deals with immediate effect and put in place strong monitoring and accountability mechanisms, so that devastating weapons will no longer kill and injure civilians in Yemen. Arms must stop flowing into Yemen and political negotiations need to be supported by all involved in this conflict.
We need to see a country wide ceasefire, protection of humanitarian workers and an inclusive peace agreement. Only an end to hostilities can truly end the suffering of the Yemeni people. They do not have the luxury to wait for peace any longer – they are dying every single day this war continues.
About CARE:
Founded in 1945 with the creation of the CARE Package®, CARE is a leading humanitarian organization fighting global poverty. CARE places special focus on working alongside women and girls because, equipped with the proper resources, they have the power to lift whole families and entire communities out of poverty. That’s why women and girls are at the heart of CARE’s community-based efforts to improve education and health, create economic opportunity, respond to emergencies and confront hunger. Last year CARE worked in 93 countries and reached more than 63 million people around the world. Learn more at care.org.
Media Contacts:
Mahmoud Shabeeb, +962-79-146-39-03 mshabeeb@care.org (based in Amman, Jordan)
Nicole Harris, 404-735-0871 nharris@care.org