Brutal war continues in Yemen despite coronavirus Covid-19

Five years of brutal war and decades of under-development in Yemen have seen humanitarian needs continue to grow at a staggering rate.  As the world grapples with a global pandemic that is having a profound social and economic impact in countries with advanced health-care systems of the world’s richest nations, Yemen, already weakened by hunger and disease and with a health system decimated by the conflict, is now bracing itself for the threat of Covid-19.

Yemen is already experiencing a dire humanitarian crisis. 80 percent of the population is in need of humanitarian assistance; two-thirds of the country lacks adequate access to clean water and sanitation; millions are living on the brink of starvation; close to 20 million people lack access to adequate healthcare; and other diseases such as cholera and dengue are already rife. All of these factors create a dangerously conducive environment for the spread of the virus.

The war continues to displace thousands of civilians. Millions of displaced people in Yemen, along with vulnerable refugees and migrants lack adequate access to water and sanitation, health care, and limited ability to ‘self-isolate’, putting them at increased risk.

The threat of Covid-19 adds another layer to an already difficult and complex operating environment for humanitarian actors who are grappling with how to maintain critical life saving programmes, access to populations in need and scaling up activities to prevent, mitigate and contain the virus.

Humanitarian Advisors calls on donors, governments, and the humanitarian community to continue to prioritise humanitarian assistance in Yemen.  Without this support, millions of displaced and conflict affected Yemenis who rely on this support as their lifeline and who remain at high risk will be left to their fate as Yemen braces itself for Covid-19.  Now is not the time to divert funding away from Yemen. We must all act together to combat this global pandemic.  Additionally, Humanitarian Advisors ask that:

• Donors must invest in strengthening health systems now to prevent an escalating crisis if Covid-19 reaches Yemen, ensuring that resources are available to fund both preventative and response measures, while showing flexibility to re-orient existing programming to scale up preventative measures, awareness, and frontline health support.
• Donors maintain humanitarian funding for critical life-saving humanitarian programming in Yemen such as food distributions, cash assistance, health, and water, sanitation and hygiene awareness. Continue to provide resources to Yemen’s humanitarian response plan to address pre-existing humanitarian needs, also taking into account additional needs to address the pandemic.
• All humanitarian actors support all measures to scale up activities to prevent, mitigate and contain this deadly virus, such as scaling up of water, sanitation and hygiene activities and health services, as well as community engagement and public awareness raising campaigns. Support the scaling up of preventative, mitigation and containment measures in Internal Displacement (IDP) camps and settlements which are particularly at risk.
• Ensure that essential non-Covid-19 responses continue. Health activities such as dengue and cholera responses must continue. With the onset of the rainy season cholera is likely to spike again. People with underlying health conditions who are at grave risk must be able to access medical care which has already been limited by the conflict. Protection programmes targeted at the most vulnerable should also be maintained.
• Show flexibility for existing grants and allow them to be adjusted to provide activities that address the current realities. This will require commitment to maintaining existing projects and investments, ear marking funding to address pre-existing humanitarian needs, re-allocation of funding, support for staff and administration costs if/when projects are suspended, donor flexibility on due diligence on remote management and programming, and adapting procurement and partnerships required to maintain programming in the new context.
• A concerted and coordinated effort by donors, INGOs and the UN is needed to find solutions to humanitarian access throughout Yemen. Donors must avoid politicising humanitarian access and funding to Yemen. At this time of a global pandemic, any suspension of life-saving aid, or withdrawal of support to healthcare programmes will leave an already vulnerable population at heightened risk.
• All humanitarian actors to support authorities to ensure minimum conditions for quarantine are observed: including providing those quarantined with appropriate levels of food, water, hygiene items and bedding. Appropriate measures must be taken to ensure sites are not congested and safe physical distancing is possible.
• Support and encourage authorities to run mass awareness campaigns providing vulnerable displaced people with adequate information about risks and mitigation measures. These campaigns should include information about where people can access services and health care.
• Work with authorities in Yemen to stabilise Yemen’s economy and to find measures to address the payment of salaries and loss of livelihoods for displaced and conflict affected people, including as a result of measures introduced to address Covid-19. Even before the recent Covid-19 threat Yemen’s economy was devestated. Yemen relies heavily on imports of food, fuel and medicines, both humanitarian and commercial. Already high prices for food and other essential items have been going up in recent months and could go up further with supply lines under pressure globally. Measures to restrict movement will affect people’s ability to work and earn an income, particularly as many Yemeni’s rely on daily wage labour.  Reduced remittances will also have a negative impact with decreased employment opportunities for Yemeni migrant workers in Gulf countries.  Hundreds and thousands of civil servants, including essential health workers and teachers have not received salaries for years. Closure of schools and other public facilities will mean the further loss of salaries.
• Donor governments must apply pressure on warring parties to immediately de-escalate the conflict. Warring parties have reportedly agreed to a ceasefire to address Covid-19 but the fighting continues. They must follow words with action and implement the ceasefire on the ground, and shift their focus to fighting the spread of Covid-19, and enabling critical life saving humanitarian activities to continue.  The peace process has been painfully slow and another concerted effort must be made to achieve sustainable peace in Yemen.