International donors raised $1.35 billion in humanitarian aid for Yemen on Tuesday during a virtual conference organized by Saudi Arabia in cooperation with the United Nations.
This came in light of growing concerns over the Iranian-backed militias’ wasting financial aid on war efforts.
Previous UN reports and government complaints also warned of the militias’ looting of a large share of the aid allocated to Yemenis and of the group’s stances that obstruct international humanitarian efforts.
Houthi leaders claim UN agencies are inactive in areas they run, where residents are perceived to be in a “big prison” controlled by the militias.
Although UN agencies and international organizations have not disclosed many of their probe results on the wasted donor funds, yet it is not clear whether the situation is different now and whether there are guarantees that these donations will be allocated in the right place.
According to these probing bodies, most of these funds are either looted by the coup group or wasted on huge operational expenditures that - according to observers' estimates - amount to more than a third of the sums allocated for the relief of millions of Yemenis.
Legitimate Government Demands
The legitimate government has regularly denounced the militias’ violations against relief work and requested international organizations to move their main headquarters to government areas.
Minister of Local Administration and Higher Committee for Relief (HRC) Chairman Abdul Raqib Fatah stressed during the latest donor conference that it is important for international organizations to decentralize relief work because it guarantees the delivery of relief and humanitarian assistance to the people who need it in all governorates.
He demanded that donor countries actively contribute to the financing of relief and humanitarian programs and gathering the necessary funding for humanitarian response projects.
In an official statement, Fatah stressed the importance of boosting the country’s economy by subsidizing the national currency and maintaining a sound monetary cycle led by the Central Bank of Yemen.
He called on the international community to put pressure on the militias to stop their intervention in the humanitarian process and allow UN and international organizations to implement their aid programs.
Fatah renewed the legitimate government’s commitment to provide support for the UN and the international organization to implement their relief and humanitarian programs.
Also, in his comments to Asharq Al-Awsat, he praised Saudi Arabia's role that resulted in the new UN pledges to support the humanitarian situation in his country.
No Guarantees
Spokesman for the Ministry of Human Rights Walid al-Abara stressed that there are no practical guarantees that limit the militias’ looting of humanitarian aid to use them for military purposes as long as this aid passes through the port of Hodeidah, which they run.
He pointed out that this aid is also stored in areas they control and is distributed centrally from the capital they run, Sanaa.
Abara told Asharq Al-Awsat that once the overall mechanisms of humanitarian work between the years (2015-2020) are reconsidered, “we will find that the port of Hodeidah remained the loophole through which international thieves and militia elements continued to exploit aid.”
Challenges
The donations raised during the recent conference proves that funding shortage still exists, Abara noted, adding that the donor countries set a series of conditions on how aid shall be distributed, which will relatively “limit their conversion to support the Houthi war effort.”
Thu humanitarian process in Yemen has been subject to collapse due to several factors, the spokesman stressed. Most notably, he explained, is the large gap between those in need and the amount of money allocated, and the insistence of the UN agencies and international organizations working in the humanitarian field to deal centrally with Houthis.
He also mentioned the restrictions imposed by Houthis on humanitarian work and their relentless pursuit to control aid in areas they run, as well as the global economic repercussions caused by the coronavirus outbreak.
All these factors, Abara says, “will make controlling the humanitarian crisis in Yemen an impossible task, at least for the time being.”
Persistent Problem
Yemeni author and journalist Ahmed Abbas confirms that the problem of the international donations to Yemen has been an issue even before the Houthi coup.
All the successive governments had been unable to benefit from the aids provided by states and international organizations, Abbas told Asharq Al-Awsat.
He stressed that most of the donations didn’t attain their developmental purposes, and donor countries and organizations were not fulfilling their obligations due to the lack of clear and specific programs.
Regarding the dilemma during the militias’ control of areas in Yemen and the ongoing war, Abbas pointed out that “aid has turned into relief programs that were supposed to achieve their minimal targets.”
However, he said, due to the militias’ control and their primitive tools, less than 30 percent of this aid is received by the citizens and the rest are looted by Houthis.
The journalist stressed the importance of finding various alternatives and mechanisms that guarantee the delivery of aid to those in need throughout Yemen, especially in Houthi-run areas.
Distrust
Yemeni author and human rights activist Hamdan al-Ali said there is a state of distrust between Yemenis and the UN and international organizations.
Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, Ali stressed that this is a real problem that needs a profound solution.
This distrust emerged due to the observations accompanied by the work of these organizations in Yemen, especially in areas under the control of Houthis.
This aid is used by Houthi to support their war efforts, said Ali who rejected the idea of the aid being halted, saying there must be a certain mechanism that ensures aid delivery to millions of needy people.