The World Bank issued a report yesterday, including the latest data regarding the worsening situation in Yemen. In the report, it was stated that 70 percent of the Yemeni population is at risk of starvation. The report also noted that the war-torn country’s gross domestic product (GDP) has fallen by half since 2015.
Emphasizing that at least 24.1 million people are in need of humanitarian aid due to the over six-year war in Yemen, the Bank stated in its report published on its website that the war created 3.7 million internally displaced people. While the report defined the country as one of the most food-insecure countries globally, it also stated that about 80% of the total population has to live below the poverty line due to the war, which wrecked the country’s national economy and caused its GDP to fall by half.
Food costs have soared as a result of fighting near seaports, commercial imports were suspended and accompanied by a shortage of supplies, and the Yemeni riyal has depreciated more than a third of its 2015 value, the report added.
According to the UN calculations, while the years-long war in Yemen caused more than 233,000 deaths and displaced millions of people, it has also created the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.
Meanwhile, the international community has maintained its attempts to ease the impacts of the humanitarian disaster in the Gulf country. In this context, the US Special Envoy for Yemen, Tim Lenderking, paid a visit to Riyadh, where he met with officials from both Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s internationally recognized government. During his visit, he reportedly discussed a wide range of issues, including steps that should be taken to reduce the level of the humanitarian crisis.
On the other hand, Swedish diplomat Hans Grundberg is expected to be named by the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a short time after China informally gave consent for his appointment, Reuters reported. Serving as the EU Ambassador to Yemen since September 2019, Grundberg will replace Martin Griffiths, who became the head of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.
