Integral Alliance has launched a Disaster Response for the growing crisis in Yemen. Four Integral Members either have work in the country or work through partners, with a further seven Members ready to support work already going in the sectors of health, food security and WASH …
Integral has facilitated one teleconference to-date. This call brought together programme and communication staff from ten of Integral’s 23 Members. The need for both short-term strengthening and support of work already happening, as well as working together on a long-term coordinated strategy, was established.
The situation in Yemen continues to worsen and a staggering 80% of the population are thought to require humanitarian assistance. Recent reports estimate 1.5m children are suffering from life-threatening malnutrition, and due to the civil war, population displacement stands at 3.1m people. On top on of the suffering inflicted by war, a country-wide famine is now a very real possibility [source here]. The BBC News channel broadcast a programme on 24th September 2016 called Starving Yemen.
Jan Eyre, Integral’s Disaster Management and Programme Coordinator, says, “It is encouraging to see news reports starting to appear in the UK about the suffering of the people of Yemen. This can only help to heighten awareness about a truly terrible situation that many have not yet heard about. My hope for this Integral response in the short-term is that we can come alongside our Members operating in the region and strengthen their work with extra funding and staffing. This is one of only three Level 3* emergencies in the world currently, and yet has not received the media attention that it merits.”
Integral Members will continue to use the Integral online platform to share information, plans, needs and resources with each other.
* A Level 3 emergency is the global humanitarian system’s classification for the response to the most severe, large-scale humanitarian crises. Yemen was declared a Level 3 emergency in July 2015, along with Syria and Iraq.