UN: Aid cuts to Yemen for not reaching its beneficiaries in Houthi areas
English - Thursday 06 February 2020 الساعة 06:34 pm
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Un sources told Reuters that aid to Yemen under the Houthileadership will be reduced next month, in an unusual move, as donors and humanitarian organizations can no longer guarantee aid to those who deserve it.
According to humanitarian sources, the Houthi authorities in northern Yemen, where most of the Yemenis dependent on aid reside, are disrupting food delivery efforts and other aid to those who deserve it to a degree that is no longer possible.
"The working climate in northern Yemen has declined dramatically in the past few months, so that humanitarian workers can no longer manage the risks of delivering aid in the current quantities," a senior UN official said.
>> Funds passed to al-Houthi through aid organizations in Yemen
Unless the situation improves, donors and humanitarian workers "will have no choice" but to cut aid, the official said.
This will include the reduction of some food assistance overseen by the United Nations World Food Programme that feeds more than 12 million people every month.
The United Nations describes the situation in Yemen as the biggest humanitarian crisis on earth and says millions there are approaching starvation.
The Supreme Council for the Administration and Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs , a Houthi organization founded in November to monitor aid, did not respond to a request for comment.
Over the past year, aid agencies have publicly and privately complained about poor working conditions, lack of travel permits and other entry restrictions, leaving workers in northern Yemen "in a state of indignation", in the words of one worker, unable to work at full capacity.
Another source familiar with the discussions between donors and aid distributors said, "At high levels, this has left agencies, ngos and donors wondering: Can we continue like this or do fundamental changes have to take place?"
None of the donors, United Nations agencies or charitable organizations have announced after the reduction in aid.
Three sources told Reuters that the cut is likely to start in March after consultation with donors this month.
"No one wants to withdraw in a time of crisis, certainly with a crisis of this magnitude in Yemen, but humanitarian workers have to balance what they are doing based on the risks they face," the UN official said.
