UNICEF: Millions of Children at Risk of Malnutrition in Yemen

By Staff, Agencies

The United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund [UNICEF] has warned that millions of children face an increased risk of malnutrition in Yemen if funds are not urgently allocated to the conflict-plagued Arab country, where one child dies every ten minutes.

The UN children's agency said in a statement on Friday that among the 11 million children in need of humanitarian assistance in war-torn Yemen, “more than 540,000 children under the age of five suffer from severe, life-threatening acute malnutrition.”

“And a child dies [on average] every ten minutes from preventable causes,” it added.

The organization said it “urgently needs $484 million” in 2023 to continue its intervention in this country, the poorest on the Arabian Peninsula, devastated by more than eight years of war.

“Without urgent action, millions of children could face heightened risks of malnutrition,” the UN agency warned, pointing out that “If the funds do not arrive, UNICEF could be forced to reduce its vital assistance to vulnerable children.”

It further added that “After 8 years, many children and families feel stuck in a perpetual cycle of hopelessness. Visiting a family recently who have been displaced from their homes for over seven years, you realize that for too many families, little of their situation has changed beyond the children’s faces. Children have grown up knowing little but conflict, providing these children with some room for hope of a peaceful future is absolutely critical.”

UNICEF urgently required US$484 million to continue its life-saving humanitarian response for children in Yemen in 2023. If funding is not received, UNICEF might be forced to scale down its vital assistance for vulnerable children.

“The children of Yemen should be able to look to the future with hope, not fear. We call on all parties to help us deliver that hope by committing to the Yemeni people, and pulling a country, and a weary population, back from the brink,” it mentioned.