While Yemen continues to face a dire humanitarian crisis, a new UN report showed that more than half of Yemen’s births are run in unsafe spaces.
Over half of Yemen’s population requires aid due to economic collapse and failing services, according to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).
This has led to increased child marriage and displacement, with climate shocks displacing almost half a million people in 2024, it said.
“The healthcare system is also struggling, with only 45% of births attended by trained personnel and a high burden of cholera,” UNFPA said in its Yemen Situation Report.
Humanitarian response efforts are hampered by access restrictions, particularly for female aid staff in Houthi-controlled areas, and security concerns, it added.
UNFPA said it is responding to the reproductive health crisis in Yemen on multiple fronts.
It is improving maternal and neonatal health services by providing reproductive health commodities, medicines, cash assistance, equipment and incentives for health care workers.
Additionally, UNFPA is rehabilitating health facilities affected by flooding, and also launched campaigns to increase demand for reproductive health services.
“We continue to support health institutes with training for students and midwives and have deployed mobile clinics to provide an integrated package of reproductive health services in remote and underserved areas,” the Fund added.
UNFPA said it is supporting midwives operating out of home-based clinics and providing treatment and care for women with obstetric fistula and is also investing in essential medical support services and the integration of women’s protection and reproductive health services.
In Yemen, UNFPA has provided multiple services to women, girls and young people, including case management, safe spaces, shelters, awareness-raising sessions and community dialogues.
The Fund reached nearly 11,000 women with multisectoral services, established nine new women and girls’ safe spaces, and supported eight shelters.
Moreover, UNFPA reached over 110,000 individuals with awareness-raising sessions and conducted six community dialogues.
The Fund advocated for the prevention of FGM and provided mental health services to over 150,000 people.
UNFPA provided services to young people, reaching 121,200 with reproductive health information and services.
Finally, through the Rapid Response Mechanism, the UN agency delivered life-saving assistance to over 43,000 individuals affected by conflict and natural disasters.
UNFPA Yemen leads the Gender-Based Violence Area of Responsibility under the Protection Cluster, aiming to address both immediate humanitarian service delivery and effective prevention and risk reduction strategies for women’s protection.
UNFPA also leads information gathering to inform strategic decisions related to GBV prevention and mitigation; GBV humanitarian planning, implementation, resource mobilization, training, and monitoring of activities; and the Reproductive Health Working Group with the Health Ministry under the health cluster.
Furthermore, UNFPA chairs the inter-agency working group on youth alongside UNDP and leads the UN Rapid Response Mechanism, overseeing strategic coordination, resource mobilization and the development of implementation strategies to deliver immediate, life-saving assistance to displaced families.
