Attachments
FOOD SECURITY AND AGRICULTURE
Yemen is a low income, food deficient and least-developed country, ranked as the seventh most food-insecure country in the world. An estimated 9.9 million people – over 42% of the total population – are currently unable to meet their basic food needs. Of these, 4.5 million people are severely food insecure and 6 million are moderately food insecure. Food insecurity is a complex problem, caused by several interrelated factors and requiring an integrated response approach.Localized conflict continues to result in displacement which is expected to continue into 2014 and 2015.
Many of the newly displaced will need food assistance for up to four months and assistance to establish viable livelihoods in their areas of return or displacement. In response, the food security and agriculture cluster (FSAC) will provide opportunities to participate in productive safety-net and livelihood enhancement activities.Although food is available in all markets at all times in sufficient quantities, mainly through importation, about 58% of Yemeni households nationally do not have enough food or money to buy food to sustain their minimum consumption requirements. With 75-85% of staple food requirements imported and 96% of households being net food purchasers, Yemeni households are highly vulnerable to market shocks and price volatility.Socio-economic and environmental causes of food insecurity are likely to persist in both the medium and long-term.
Disruption to livelihoods due to local conflict, global variability in fuel and cereal prices, the reduction in remittances arising from the deportation of an estimated 400,000 Yemenis from Saudi Arabia, the proposed lifting of fuel subsidies and inflation will all cause shocks to household incomes and put continuing downward pressure on the purchasing power of the poorest households. These short and medium-term factors will be aggravated by a failure to address the underlying structural causes of food insecurity, including the oligopolistic nature of the cereal market, high unemployment and low household food production in rural areas.