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Yemen

Yemen: UNHCR Operational Update, 17 September 2020

Attachments

IDP Response

The Government of Yemen’s (GoY) Executive Unit that coordinates IDP assistance, with partners managed the relocation of 80 displaced families who were evicted from an informal IDP hosting site in Aden. Evictions are a wide spread issue of high concern for the Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) cluster, led by UNHCR. In the south, most vulnerable displaced families who cannot offer to pay for rent or have no relatives to host them often end up settling in informal sites, in abandoned or unfinished buildings or open spaces. Humanitarian actors are not always able to negotiate with authorities or land owners to allow displaced families to temporary settle in these locations, putting them at risk of eviction. A recent report covering 606,000 individuals in 658 IDP hosting sites reveal that most (86 per cent) of the families live on private land, 12 per cent in public institutions and 2 per cent on land or property of unknown ownership. A majority (87 per cent) live on properties without any tenancy agreement, and one out of three sites in Yemen is facing eviction threats.

Refugee Response

Since March with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, over 550 Somali nationals arriving from the areas under the de facto authority (DFA)-controlled territory have been registered in the south. So far, UNHCR has assisted 500 of them with registration and emergency cash to pay for food and accommodation, including 35 during the reporting period. Close to 170 of these new arrivals also received hygiene kits and mosquito nets. New arrivals also underwent a thorough protection assessment to help determine the most appropriate assistance, while also liaising with Médecins Sans Frontières, to refer those affected to trauma centres for additional support.

Authorities in Sana’a have not yet released the 2020/2021 school calendar, but the ministerial exams (grades nine and 12) were held on schedule and ended in the first week of September. According to UNHCR plans, around 3,000 refugee children will benefit from UNHCR’s education support once the new academic year commences, particularly with the provision of school kits and uniforms. In the south, the start of the school year has been announced by the GoY. Refugees organised a communityled, two-day-cleaning campaign in the three primary schools in Basateen as a COVID-19 preparedness activity. In Basateen, 7,830 refugees and Yemeni children are expected to attend primary schools this year.