A child in Yemen is being attended to by health practitioners from UNICEF. Photograph: United Nations
Contributor
02 July 2020
24 million people in Yemen are need of humanitarian aid due to the poor condition of their nation’s economy caused by years of conflict.
The Southwest Asian Nation is currently suffering from an epidemic (cholera), pandemic (Covid-19), famine and war all at the same time.
The crisis in Yemen is the largest humanitarian crisis in the world, 80 percent of the population are in need of humanitarian assistance, including more than 12 million children. Since, the conflict escalated in March 2015, the country has become a living hell for the country’s children.
With Covid- 19 now spreading across the country, Yemen is facing an emergency within an emergency.
Water sources are in short supply as well as contaminated. The sanitation systems are failing as only half of the health facilities are functioning.
The facilities that remain operational lack basic equipment like ambulances, masks, gloves, testing kits, let alone oxygen and and other essential supplies to treat the Covid-19 virus.
According to UNICEF figures, one child dies every 10 minutes in Yemen.
UN Secretary- General Antonio said: “Two million Yemeni children are suffering from acute malnutrition, which could stunt their growth and affect them through-out their lives.
“Four people out of every five, 24 million in all, need lifesaving aid in what remains the world’s largest humanitarian crisis.”
Aid agencies estimate the need for up to $2.41 billion to cover essential lifesaving until the end of the year. The health system is in a state of collapse yet the world has offered less help than it did last year.
However, half of that amount still hasn’t been received. UNICEF has stated that unless more funds are received by the end of August about 235,000 children will be at an increased risk of dying due to acute malnutrition.
Yemen is in desperate need of our assistance, and this is what we can do to help the people in the country:
Sign petitions:
-Email your MP to address your concerns (templated for open letters can be found online).
-Donate:
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