While the rest of the world marches on, Yemen is experiencing the largest
humanitarian crisis the world has ever seen; about 80% of the population in need of humanitarian assistance. The conflict has its roots in the failure of a political transition supposed to bring stability to Yemen following an Arab Spring uprising that forced its longtime authoritarian president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, to hand over power to his deputy, Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, in 2011. As president, Mr Hadi struggled to deal with a variety of problems, including attacks by jihadists, a separatist movement in the south as well as corruption, unemployment and food insecurity. With Covid 19 pandemic the situation has only become worse. Yemen is currently suffering an emergency within an emergency with the unavailability of food and hospitals. The lives of millions of people including more than 12 million children are at risk and the country’s instability proves to be a threat to the future of the children. Sanitation and clean water are unavailable to most and only half of the health facilities in the country are functioning and even they lack basic necessities such as masks and gloves. With damage and shutting down of multiple schools and hospitals, education and health services are at an all-time low which poses a threat to the future of the country as a whole. Around 2 million children under the age of 5 are malnourished and the economy has failed. UNICEF has shipped crucial personal protective equipment needed by frontline workers and has continued to provide risk communication and community engagement activities. UNICEF is also trying to provide safe spaces for learning and is providing food to millions of malnourished children. Violence and conflict have driven the country into a dire condition but with spreading awareness and UNICEF’s quick response the country‘s situation may soon improve.
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