Yemen: Climate Crisis Limits Women's Access to Health Care

Pregnancies and childbirth are fraught with additional risks in displacement camps in Yemen (United Nations)

One day, when Mahra was returning from fetching water, she collapsed on the road, and she was bleeding so badly that she felt she was going to lose her baby, according to a UN report.
Mahra was 31 years old and five months pregnant when she was forced to relocate with her family to the displacement camp in Taiz, southwest Yemen.
She explained to the UN Population Fund (UNFP) that they hoped to find some peace and safety, but there was nothing, and they had to fight for everything.
"But there was nothing. We had to fight for every drop of water, every morsel of food, and every breath of air. We had to walk miles to fetch water – it was very hard," she told the agency.
Mahra had four children to take care of, even though she was weak and suffering from malnutrition and pregnancy complications due to lack of proper care and nutrition.
After she collapsed, Mahra was driven to Aden and treated at the al-Sadaqa Hospital, which is three hours away from the displacement camp. She said her life and physical health were saved, but the pregnancy caused her mental health to deteriorate.
After Mahra left the hospital, she returned to the camp and had to resume her duties. She had no choice.
"I had to fetch water, cook, clean, and take care of my children and my few remaining sheep. I endured pain, sadness, fear, and despair... but I had to survive."
- Impact of climate extremes
New UNFPA research shows that climate extremes and the disasters that follow have a disproportionate impact on the mental and physical health of women, girls, and newborns, including anxiety, hypertensive disorders, preterm and low-weight births, and stillbirths.
According to UN data, Yemen is among the 14 countries most vulnerable to climate change, and over the past decade, the frequency and ferocity of extreme weather events, ranging from hurricanes to droughts to flash floods, has increased.
Climate disasters during 2023 led to the displacement of more than 200,000 people, many of whom were forced to move several times, losing their source of livelihood as well as any opportunity to obtain primary health care.
The UN Fund confirmed that for women and girls, the repercussions were wide-ranging and life-threatening.
The Fund states that as the conflict continued, severe drought prevailed in various regions of the country, exacerbating the situation for millions already fleeing for their lives.
In a humanitarian crisis, women and girls face a litany of dangers, from higher risks of gender-based violence and exploitation to forced and child marriage, diseases, and malnutrition.
According to the UN Fund, the lack of food, water, and health access, together with overexertion and high levels of stress, mean that pregnancies and births are also fraught with added danger.
- Difficult situations
Women in Yemen face harsh living conditions, according to the UN report.
For example, to fetch water and firewood, they may have to walk for hours, often unaccompanied, under the burning sun, over treacherous land, and amid an active conflict.
However, Yemen's conflict has displaced more than 4.5 million people within the country and left over 21 million in need of urgent humanitarian assistance.
The United Nations confirms that for many like Mahra, it wasn't always this way.
Many came from large families of farmers and herders who had lived off the land for generations and had many sheep and cows, crops, fodder, and a well provided clean water.
However, everything changed and rain became scarce, and they didn't know when to plant or harvest.
The crops failed, the well dried up, and the animals starved to death.
The UN indicated that the catastrophe has been compounded by Yemen's brutal war, which for eight years has created rampant insecurity and economic turmoil.
"The evidence is clear that climate change does contribute to increased conflict," noted the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, which this week is convening a summit to address climate perils.
The climate crisis is only tightening its grip, and millions more lives and livelihoods hang in an increasingly fragile balance.