Oxfam Quebec

Published purpose

March 2016 - The humanitarian situation in Yemen has deteriorated dramatically since the conflict intensified in late March 2015. Deepening insecurity and violence have taken a heavy toll on civilian lives and have triggered large-scale internal displacement and cross border population movements. Humanitarian partners now estimate that 21.2 million people, or 82 per cent of the population, require some kind of humanitarian assistance to meet their basic needs or protect their fundamental rights. It is also estimated that 14.4 million people are food insecure, including 7.6 million severely food insecure; 19.3 million people lack adequate access to clean water or sanitation; 14.1 million people lack sufficient access to healthcare; 3 million children and pregnant or lactating women require malnutrition treatment or preventive services; and, 1.8 million children have been out of school since mid-March. Numerous health facilities have stopped functioning due to a lack of fuel, supplies and personnel. In addition, solid waste removal has come to a halt in several areas and service availability is rapidly contracting due to direct impact of conflict and insufficient resources to pay salaries or maintain services. There are over 2.3 million people who have been displaced in Yemen and an additional 121,000 people who have fled the country, mainly to Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan. With GAC’s support, Oxfam-Québec is providing emergency water, sanitation, hygiene and protection services awareness for up to 84,000 vulnerable individuals in Southern Yemen. Project activities include: (1) providing safe drinking water; (2) rehabilitating urban water systems; (3) repairing or rehabilitating latrines located in schools and public buildings; (4) distributing hygiene kits; and (5) providing information on protection related services in targeted communities.