At the Fourth Donors' Conference for Yemen, organised by the United Nations, Sweden and Switzerland, on Tuesday 26 February in Geneva, the European Commission pledged €161.5 million in humanitarian aid to alleviate the suffering of a population affected by the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
The call for funds was for $4.2 billion, an amount required by all UN agencies to cover the needs of 19 million people in 2019.
"Four in five people are in need of assistance. With millions now threatened by famine, all must be done to deliver emergency support on the ground", said Christos Stylianides, European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid.
This funding will enable ECHO's partner organisations (the Commission's humanitarian aid department) to provide more essential products and services - food, nutrition, health care, shelter, sanitation, education and protection. But "a political solution remains the only way forward", the Commissioner pointed out.
Since the conflict broke out in 2015, 4.3 million people (15% of the population) have been displaced, including 185,000 in 2018 alone. A total of 24 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance. 20 million are food insecure and half are at risk of starvation. 2 million children no longer go to school.
Last year, the EU pledged €107.5 million in response to the UN's appeal (see EUROPE 11993). (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)