• Acute malnutrition in Yemen has risen by 34% among children under five, with over 600,000 affected, including 120,000 severely malnourished.
• Reduced WFP food rations due to low funding are worsening the crisis amid ongoing conflict and infrastructure destruction.
Yemen is facing a deepening crisis of acute malnutrition, particularly in areas controlled by the internationally recognized government. A recent report from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Technical Group highlights the severe impact of the ongoing war, economic collapse, and widespread disease on the country’s most vulnerable populations.
According to the IPC’s findings, the number of children under the age of five suffering from acute malnutrition, also known as wasting, has risen by 34 percent compared to the previous year in government-controlled areas. This alarming increase affects over 600,000 children, including 120,000 who are severely malnourished. The report from the United Nations also notes that all 117 districts in government-controlled areas surveyed are projected to experience ‘serious’ levels of acute malnutrition or worse. For the first time, ‘extremely critical’ levels of acute malnutrition have been reported in the southern Hodeidahlowlands, particularly in the Al Khawkhah and Hays districts along the Red Sea coast, as well as in the Al Makha district of the Taiz lowlands. The Mawza district in Taiz is particularly at risk of slipping into the ‘extremely critical’ level.
The worsening malnutrition crisis is driven by multiple factors, including the spread of diseases such as cholera and measles, a chronic shortage of nutritious food, and a lack of clean drinking water. The broader economic decline in Yemen, a country devastated by nearly a decade of war, has further exacerbated the situation. The conflict, which began in 2015 when Houthi forces ousted the government from the capital Sanaa, has seen the country split between areas controlled by the Houthis and those loyal to the Saudi-backed government based in Aden.
Peter Hawkins, UNICEF’s representative to Yemen, expressed grave concern over the findings, stating, “The report confirms an alarming trend of acute malnutrition for children in southern Yemen. To protect the most vulnerable women, girls, and boys, an investment in and scale-up of prevention and treatment efforts are more critical than ever.” He emphasized the importance of building on existing multisectoral responses to combat life-threatening malnutrition, ensuring that children have the chance to survive and thrive.
The ongoing conflict in Yemen, driven by multiple factions struggling for power, has led to widespread destruction of infrastructure, severe food shortages, and the loss of hundreds of thousands of lives. In December, a UN-led roadmap offered a glimpse of hope, with warring parties agreeing to work towards ending the war and resuming an inclusive political process. However, in a show of solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza, recent Houthi actions in the Red Sea have raised concerns about the roadmap’s future, though Saudi Arabia’s response has remained relatively restrained.
Compounding the crisis is the significant reduction in humanitarian aid funding, particularly from the United States. The U.S. government, once one of the largest contributors to the World Food Programme (WFP) and other humanitarian aid agencies in Yemen, has drastically cut its funding in recent years. This reduction, attributed to concerns over aid mismanagement and effectiveness, has severely hampered the WFP’s ability to provide adequate food assistance to those in need. The U.S. decision to reduce funding has contributed to the worsening malnutrition crisis in Yemen, as the funding shortfall directly affects the most vulnerable populations, especially children.
As a result, the World Food Programme (WFP) has been forced to reduce the size of food rations, further endangering those already at risk. Pierre Honnorat, WFP’s representative and country director in Yemen, warned, “These findings should be a wakeup call that lives are at stake. It is critical to step up support to the most vulnerable, who could sink deeper into food insecurity and malnutrition if current low levels of humanitarian funding persist.”
For more detailed information, you can access the full UN report here.
