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Emergencies

YEMEN HUMANITARIAN CRISIS

4.5 million

million Yemenis, or 14 percent of the population, have been forced to flee their homes because of the crisis. Most of them have been displaced multiple times over a number of years (as of March 2023).

21.6 million

21.6 million people in Yemen are in dire need of humanitarian assistance and protection services, two thirds of the population (as of March 2023).

17 million

17 million Yemenis are food insecure, including 3.2 million people with acute food insecurity (as of May 2023).

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Right now, war and violence have forced more than 100 million people to flee their homes. Sign up to learn how you can help!

About the Crisis in Yemen

The situation in Yemen, located at the southern end of the Arabian Peninsula, remains the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. Eight years of war have driven more than 4.5 million people from their homes and 21.6 million are in dire need of humanitarian assistance and protection services. 2022 alone saw 234,000 new displacements. Yemen remains among the top six largest internal displacements in the world. 

Since violence broke out in late March 2015, Yemen - already one of the poorest countries in the Middle East – has seen its economy shrink by half and more than 80 percent of the population now live below the poverty line. The conflict and economic collapse have significantly damaged public services, which were already limited in Yemen. Only 50 percent of health facilities and 65 percent of schools are currently functioning, leaving more than 2 million children out of school. Nearly 90 percent of the population has no access to publicly supplied electricity. Key public service employees, including Yemeni health workers and two-thirds of all Yemeni teachers, have not received a regular salary in years.

Years of economic decline and institutional collapse are pushing the country to the brink of a large-scale famine, with 17 million people—more than half of the population—suffering from high levels of food insecurity and 3.2 million people already acutely food insecure. The situation has been further compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic, outbreaks of preventable diseases and climate-induced natural disasters

Yemen hosts around 99,877 refugees and asylum seekers, 70 percent of whom are Somali and 20 percent Ethiopian - making Yemen the world’s fourth largest host of Somali refugees. The majority of the refugee and asylum-seeking population live in unsuitable accommodation without access to water in the overcrowded and impoverished neighborhoods of Aden and Sana’a.

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Displaced Yemenis need our help

How to Help in Yemen

UNHCR is on the ground aiding Yemeni refugees, but resources are stretched too thin. Your gift will offer hope for a safe future.

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What is UNHCR doing to help in Yemen?

Despite challenging circumstances, the UN Refugee Agency is on the ground delivering lifesaving support to millions of displaced Yemenis as well as to refugees and asylum-seekers across the country. UNHCR is the only international agency on the ground offering direct assistance and protection to Yemenis who have been forced to flee. 

Protection and food security remain top priorities. UNHCR is helping displaced Yemeni families meet their basic needs through the provision of shelter, cash assistance, registration services and legal aid. The cash-assistance program reaches more than one million people every year.

UNHCR is also offering specialized relief items to address specific needs of displaced communities, including mattresses, sleeping mats, kitchen items, buckets, core household products and kits to address bomb damage to homes. 

Yemen Refugee Camps and Settlements

Somali refugee family sits near their shelter in Kharaz refugee camp, Yemen.

More Facts About the Yemen Crisis

  • An estimated 80 percent of all displaced persons in Yemen are women and children and at least 26 percent of displaced households are female-headed.
  • Today, more than 1.5 million displaced Yemenis live across 2,300 precarious hosting sites scattered throughout Yemen where living conditions are unsafe and overcrowded.
  • Over 89 percent of IDPs have no source of income at all or live with less than 40 dollars per month.
  • Up to 93 percent of displaced Yemeni families have at least one member with a vulnerability, including persons with injuries, exhibiting psychological distress, children engaged in labor and elderly with no care support.

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