Operational environment
Fighting in Yemen continued during 2018, escalating dramatically in late-May when frontlines in Al-Hudaydah began to advance towards the city’s edge. Pervasive fighting in Al-Hudaydah also amplified the humanitarian crisis as the blockade on importation of critical goods placed further strain on humanitarian response capacity, contributing to a continued risk of famine. Cholera outbreaks were also recorded across several governorates. The local economy suffered from high inflation, currency devaluation, and fuel scarcities – further reducing the purchasing power and impacting the delivery of aid and assistance efforts.
With clashes recorded across multiple governorates in 2018, a long-awaited ceasefire agreement concluded in December has yet to have the desired impact.
Population trends
In 2018, some 22.2 million people – over three quarters of the country’s population – remained in need of humanitarian assistance, including 11.3 million people in acute need of urgent assistance.
The IDP population increased slightly to 2.1 million, with more than 89% of people displaced for over a year. While more than 133,600 IDPs were reported to have returned during 2018, those returning often experienced secondary displacement as a result of persisting conflict. The launch of the Hudaydah offensive, for example, in June caused more than 600,000 persons to flee.
In addition to internal displacement, Yemen played host to approximately 273,000 refugees and asylum-seekers, a figure that remained more or less stable during the year. A dramatic decrease in asylum-seekers arriving in Yemen was noted, with approximately 3,700 newly registered asylum-seekers recorded by UNHCR – compared to over 100,000 the year before. More than 90% of those arriving from the Horn of Africa arrived from Somalia, with the remainder from Ethiopia, Eritrea, and the Syrian Arabic Republic, among other countries.
Key achievements
- Following the 2017 cholera outbreak, UNHCR strengthened its prevention efforts within refugee and host communities through a cholera treatment centre in Kharaz. The Office also stepped up training for volunteers as part of a comprehensive system-wide response.
- The Assisted Spontaneous Return (ASR) programme helped nearly 2,600 Somalis return home from Yemen, while continuing to provide return counselling to thousands of Somalis through specific help-desks in Kharaz Camp, Al Mukalla City and Basateen neighborhood in Aden.
- Through 31 quick-impact projects (QIPs), UNHCR improved conditions for IDPs and host communities by rehabilitating shared local resources such as markets, community spaces, roads, and water sources.
Unmet needs
In 2018, UNHCR’s cash assistance programme was unable to meet all needs identified. Soaring inflation and constant pressure on UNHCR to increase the value of cash grants (based on a minimum basket methodology) to match the ever-rising cost of essential goods and services affected the capacity of the Operation to respond in an adequate fashion.
Other unmet needs included assistance to households facing eviction; the provision of psychosocial support to people with specific needs; increasing demands for legal assistance, including acquisition of civil documentation; effective support to unaccompanied/out of school children – a growing phenomenon due to families’ inability to meet their needs; increased support to refugee and asylum-seeker youth both in terms of accredited vocational training to provide skills and recreation; community based projects (including QIPs to improve the basic services available to IDPs) and – in the case of refugee/hosting communities – fostering greater social cohesion.