March 2020 – Yemen is currently the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, with 24 million people in need of humanitarian assistance. The conflict and collapsing economy has pushed nearly 10 million people to the brink of famine, and over 3.6 million people have been displaced since the beginning of the crisis in 2015. Basic service provision is collapsing, including critical water, sanitation, hygiene and health services, increasing the risk of disease outbreaks such as cholera, dengue fever and diphtheria. Women and girls are disproportionately affected by the lack of access to essential services and face an increased risk of sexual and gender-based violence due to the crisis. With GAC’s multi-year support, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) Canada is providing emergency health and nutrition support to up to 135,000 of the most vulnerable conflict-affected people, particularly women, in the Marib and Sana’a governorates of Yemen. Project activities include: (1) providing health facilities with essential medication and medical supplies; (2) providing health services, including emergency obstetric and newborn care, family planning, and vaccination for children; (3) ensuring access to medical services and psychosocial support for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence; and (4) screening and providing treatment for acute malnutrition, particularly among children and pregnant and lactating women.
The expected outcomes for this project include: (1) increased use of gender-sensitive health and protection services by people affected by the Yemen crisis, including internally displaced populations; and (2) reduced prevalence of acute malnutrition in children under the age of 5 and pregnant and lactating women. The expected ultimate outcome is lives saved, suffering alleviated and human dignity maintained in countries experiencing humanitarian crisis or that are facing acute food insecurity.
