Attachments
New York, 11 December 2024
As delivered
Thank you, Madam President, and to Special Envoy Grundberg for his continuing efforts for peace in Yemen.
Madam President,
As this is my first Security Council meeting as Emergency Relief Coordinator, I would like to start with some wider points.
As I said at the launch of our Global Humanitarian Overview for 2025, we are facing a world on fire. More than 300 million people are suffering the devastating humanitarian consequences of conflicts, climate change and inequality.
The humanitarian community, who I am here to represent, is doing an outstanding job of supporting people through these crises – 116 million so far this year. I want to recognize their work, in Yemen and around the world.
But they are overstretched, underfunded and under attack. And this is preventing us from saving lives.
We must do better.
The Security Council has a vital role to play.
So in these briefings, I will endeavor to provide concise updates on our response to humanitarian crises; and practical recommendations.
On that basis, Madam President, let me turn to Yemen.
2024, as my colleague has described, has been a deeply challenging year.
Yemen has remained under the shadow of internal conflict, while facing new regional escalation of tensions, deepening economic crisis, and increased threats to the safety and security of UN and humanitarian staff.
Attacks from and on Yemen have risked damage to vital seaport infrastructure; endangered the flow of essential food, fuel and other imports on which millions of Yemenis depend; and threatened an unprecedented oil spill.
The economic situation across the country has deteriorated, with the World Bank predicting a further 1 per cent GDP contraction in 2024, on top of the 54 per cent drop in real GDP per capita since 2015.
In areas controlled by the Government of Yemen, the Yemeni Rial has hit successive record lows throughout the year, as oil and gas exports remain obstructed. The cost of food in these areas has increased by 28 per cent compared to last year.
Basic services have faltered. Families have less money in their pockets – increasingly turning to alternative ways to survive, including child marriage.
A liquidity crisis has prevented people from accessing banking deposits, further straining fragile business operations and delaying major humanitarian programmes. A cholera outbreak has spread across the country, affecting more than 200,000 people.
And floods displaced more than half a million people during a particularly severe rainy season exacerbated by the climate crisis.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian response continues to face severe constraints. Funding cuts have forced closure of vital programmes. The total number of people in need has increased since the start of the year from 18.2 to 19.5 million.
As my colleague underlined, it has been more than six months since more than 50 people working for the UN, NGOs, civil society and diplomatic missions were arbitrarily detained by the Houthi de facto authorities.
While one UN staff member and two NGO personnel were recently released, this continued detention is unacceptable and a violation of international law. It has also significantly hindered our operations.
But despite the challenges, Madam President,humanitarians and the humanitarian movement, working closely with communities, stayed and delivered a large-scale, principled response to an estimated 7.8 million people in 2024.
We helped contain a cholera outbreak by providing assistance to more than 2 million people.
We helped curb the spread of food insecurity by providing targeted emergency food distributions and livelihood support.
We provided shelter materials, sanitation support, food and cash to more than 440,000 newly displaced people.
And we continued efforts to improve the quality of the response, in direct consultation with affected people.
For example, we identified sustainable water management solutions, including through climate-sensitive solar-powered water supply systems that provide clean water to thousands.
We expanded cash programming to reach more than 580,000 people.
And the Yemen Humanitarian Fund channeled over 60 per cent of funding through local organizations, including those led by women.
This vital work will continue. We will include affected people in the design and delivery of support, especially the marginalized, women and girls, older persons and people with disabilities.
Above all, we will stay and deliver – delivering support to address human suffering whenever and wherever it is found, based on need alone.
To do this, Madam President, we need three things from the Security Council:
First, your sustained influence to secure full respect for international humanitarian law.
This includes ensuring that infrastructure indispensable to the survival of the population of Yemen is spared. It is particularly critical that Yemen’s Red Sea ports remain operational and available for imports – they are lifelines for millions of people.
It also includes supporting UN efforts to secure the immediate and unconditional release of all those arbitrarily detained by the Houthi de facto authorities, and to ensure safety of UN and humanitarian staff.
Second, your support for full humanitarian funding. This year, as highlighted in the Global Humanitarian Overview, our humanitarian partners need an estimated $2.5 billion to reach 10.5 million people across Yemen.
And thirdly and finally, Special Envoy Grundberg must be backed to secure a lasting resolution to the conflict in Yemen. This is essential to ending the decade-long cycle of humanitarian suffering.
I look forward to working with you all for the civilians and communities we serve.
Thank you.
Disclaimer
- UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs
- To learn more about OCHA's activities, please visit https://www.unocha.org/.