Yemen pledging conference leaves the most vulnerable behind – INGOs

Following today’s high-level Yemen Pledging Conference, held in Geneva, INGOs working in Yemen are deeply concerned that despite the dramatic worsening of an already dire humanitarian crisis, indications show that world leaders pledged less than US$1.3bn today.

This reduction in funding will have a critical impact on the lives of people in Yemen.

While all donors at the conference highlighted the seriousness of the humanitarian situation in Yemen, the indicated US$1.3bn, pledged falls short of the needs identified by the humanitarian community in Yemen by around US$2.9bn. The shortfall in funding comes amidst growing numbers of people in need in Yemen: 23.4 million up from 20.7m last year.

As funding for the humanitarian response in Yemen continues to reduce year on year, funding shortages have already forced aid agencies to reduce life-saving assistance.

“Today was a chance for the international community to show it stands with the people of Yemen. But while donors should be thanked for their pledges, this significant gap in funding will mean that millions of people will not receive the humanitarian assistance they desperately need. It means that many people will be pushed to the brink of famine, that those injured by the conflict could be denied critical, life-saving medical care and that many of the 4 million people forced to flee their homes will be unable to return.” – Taline Elkhansa,
Country Director, Danish Refugee Council

The current gap in funding will have an immediate and critical impact on the lives of millions of civilians in Yemen. We call on the international community to demonstrate its continued commitment to the people of Yemen. We must not forget them.