Conflict, starvation and disease - Yemen
Yemen has been described by the United Nations as the world's worst man-made humanitarian crisis. More than 10,000 civilians have died since 2011, and over 22 million people - 80 percent of the population - require humanitarian assistance and are struggling to survive. More than 3.3 million children and pregnant or lactating women are acutely malnourished. This includes 462,000 children younger than five years who suffer from severe acute malnutrition. Since 2016 cholera outbreaks have led to hundreds of thousands of suspected and confirmed cholera cases and more than 2,000 confirmed deaths. An estimated 6,000 people, including approximately 2,000 children, have been left with a disability since the start of the conflict.
The AHP Response
A Save the Children Australia training provides Yemeni midwives with practical learning and theoretical methods to help save the lives of mothers and newborns© Save the Children Australia.
The AHP was activated in May 2017 and, through AHP Save the Children Australia, life-saving support is being provided to key vulnerable populations in Yemen.
Save the Children Australia’s is working to save lives through improved health and nutrition among targeted communities. They are providing safe water, improved hygiene and sanitation services, improved food and nutrition services, and cholera response activities. They are also working to ensure the needs of people living with disabilities, and other marginalised groups, are reached.
The AHP Yemen response aims to reach 50,000 men, women, boys and girls, including those people living with disabilities. It is part of a broader multi-donor funded program delivered by Save the Children that is assisting more than 2.5 million. The AHP response includes rehabilitating public rain water harvesting systems, maintaining and managing water points and constructing gender segregated and disability accessible hygiene and sanitation facilities in six health centres and five schools. These activities are designed to mitigate the spread of cholera and will be supported by health services, including a diarrhoea treatment centre and 10 oral rehydration therapy centres.
To improve access to life-saving food assistance, Save the Children is providing cash transfers to 1600 conflict-affected households reaching 11,200 people. Cash transfers are appropriate in Yemen where food is available and local markets are operating. Wheelchairs, crutches and hearing devices are being distributed to ensure the inclusion of people with disabilities in all humanitarian activities. Gender-based violence and child protection training are provided at health centres, focusing on topics such as sexual assault, exploitation and abuse, child and/or forced marriage, forced labour and domestic violence. Referral and reporting mechanisms have been put in place.