Having already helped more than 9,000 displaced Yemeni households in the first two months of 2019 alone, the UNHCR has now requested more funding so that it can continue to help those who have been affected by the civil war.

Some 24 million people are in need of critical assistance, and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees has requested a total of $198.6 million for funding their relief efforts in 2019. 20 percent of that funding requirement has been met so far.

Yemen, which lies to the south-west of Oman, has seen more than 3.34 million people displaced in the last three years due to the ongoing civil war within the county. 81 per cent of them have been displaced for more than a year. A further 264,667 people have become either refugees or asylum seekers.

The UNHCR’s aid means that one million Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) have been able to return home, while 1.2 million IDPs have been provided assistance, either in the form of cash or kind.

“UNHCR continues to meet the needs of displaced families across Yemen,” said a spokesperson for the organisation. “A thousand of the most vulnerable displaced families in Sa’ada city and eastern Kitaf wa Al Boqe’e district in Sa’ada governorate are to receive core relief items (CRIs) and emergency shelter kits (ESKs). Displaced persons in the boundary districts of Baqim, Kitaf wa Al Boqe’e, Razih, Shada’a and Ad Dhaher continue to move towards the centre regions of Sa’ada, Sahar and As Safra districts due to continued armed clashes and airstrikes.”

So far in 2019, a total of 712 CRIs and 11 ESKs have already been distributed in Sa’ada governorate, the largest number in Sa’ada district. Based on the needs identified by UNHCR partner Yemen Al Khair for Relief Development in the northern border region of Al Jawf governorate, a total of 1,750 families are also to receive ESKs in the western districts of Kharab Al Marashi, Barat Al Anan and Rajuzah. On 21 February, 76 IDP families hosted in the stadium IDP site in Hajjah City received CRIs through partner Jeel Albena.

A total of 194 newly displaced IDP families from Al Hudaydah were identified by UNHCR’s partner, the Yemeni Response Council in the Amran governorate. The majority of these families received CRIs while assessments are still on-going. In Amran governorate, 1,723 IDP families have been identified since June 2018, of which 1,401 have received CRI assistance. In Abs district, 1,140 recently displaced individuals received targeted awareness sessions on psychosocial support, sexual and gender-based violence, hygiene and education through the UNHCR’s partner, the Adventist Development and relief Agency.

“According to the International Organisation for Migration, as of October 2018, Al Jawf had had one of the lowest numbers of IDP families,” added the UNHCR. “However, due to recent armed clashes and airstrikes in the centre-west of Al Jawf district, several thousand families were reportedly displaced. The scope of this displacement is currently being verified. Abs is where the majority of the 25,000 recently displaced families in Hajjah Governorate have temporarily settled.

The organisation went on to add, “The IDPs comprise of those who fled Hajjah in 2016 and more recently those from Hudaydah in June 2018. In 2016, UNHCR rehabilitated the site, while Oxfam provided a number of latrines. The World Food Programme regularly distributes food baskets. The UNHCR is also assessing those families that require aid so that they can go to the right people.

“As a follow-up to the 9,053 IDP households that received the first round of cash assistance this year in the southern governorates, UNHCR Sub Office Aden visited the financial provider Al Amal bank to evaluate the implementation,” added the organisation. “It is noteworthy that 16 per cent of the beneficiaries are from the extremely vulnerable host community, and almost 30 per cent of individuals collected their cash within two days, emphasizing the urgent need for cash intervention.

“UNHCR completed the assessment and confirmation of the beneficiaries for cash winter support for 1,086 IDP households in Ash Shamayatayn and Al Ma’aafer districts in Taizz Governorate,” they added. “Beneficiaries include 886 households fleeing violence in Al Hudaydah governorate and 200 from the vulnerable host community. UNHCR SO Aden is providing IDPs in Taizz governorate with winter assistance, after IOM’s provision was ended in 2018.”

AFP.