International UN Donor Conference on Yemen
Welthungerhilfe: We Must Prevent a Famine
Bonn, 22/02/2019 The next international UN donor conference on Yemen takes place in Geneva on Tuesday. Despite one of the largest assistance interventions by the United Nations and international organisations, the humanitarian situation in the country has drastically deteriorated. 24 million people need help to survive. That is around 80 percent of the population. Around 2 million children under 5 are already acutely undernourished. The United Nations fears that 10 million people will be hit by famine unless rapid assistance is provided.
Welthungerhilfe calls on participants at the donor conference to significantly improve the conditions for humanitarian assistance in the country. “Yemen is on the brink of a famine. We should not allow that to happen. But money alone cannot stop the tragedy. Only a political solution to the conflict can put a lasting end to the suffering of the population. However, aid organisations also need better working conditions. This includes more flexibility to be able to use money where it is most urgently needed. It is frustrating that we are denied access to some areas on a daily basis. Donors should put more pressure on the different authorities on the ground, to remove obstacles. Despite all the difficulties, the international community has been able to save many lives, and it should not give up now”, says Mathias Mogge, General Secretary of Welthungerhilfe.
Welthungerhilfe has been active in Yemen since May 2017, in collaboration with its French Alliance2015 partner, ACTED, and it supports families in need, through cash assistance and food vouchers.
Welthungerhilfe is one of the largest private aid organisations in Germany; politically independent and non-denominational. It is fighting for "Zero Hunger by 2030". Since its establishment in 1962, more than 8,900 overseas projects in 70 countries have been supported with 3.53 billion euros. Welthungerhilfe works on the principle of empowering people to help themselves: from fast disaster relief to reconstruction and long-term development cooperation projects with national and international partner organisations.
