Thursday 17 August 2017
In December 2016, the UK Disaster Emergency Committee ("the DEC") launched an appeal in response to the growing humanitarian crisis in Yemen. At that time, the Overseas Aid & Development Commission donated £50,000 to the appeal.
In recent weeks, the many aid agencies working to relive the suffering of the people of Yemen have faced a new challenge as a cholera epidemic has broken out and placed new demands on the country's already fractured health care system.
In response to this new crisis with Yemen, the DEC has extended the scope of its response to include funding for programmes to treat those who have contracted this waterborne disease and to redouble efforts to reduce the risk of it spreading further.
In reaching its decision to make a further donation to the DEC appeal, the Commission recognised that almost all people in Yemen sick with suspected cholera who can access health services are surviving. However, nearly 15 million people in the country are unable to get basic health care while almost 16 million don't have access to clean water because of damage to infrastructure from the conflict.
Yemen has been subject to civil war since March 2015 and this has aggravated an already dire humanitarian crisis brought on by years of poverty, poor governance, conflict and ongoing instability. Yemen is ranked 160 out of 188 countries on the UNDP Human Development Index and has an estimated per capita annual income of £2,200.
Deputy Yerby, President of the Overseas Aid & Development Commission said,
"In reaching its decision to make a further donation to the DEC appeal, the Commission recognised that people with cholera who can access health services normally survive. However, nearly 15 million people in Yemen are unable to get basic health care while almost 16 million don't have access to clean water because of damage to infrastructure from the conflict - meaning that cholera could have a devastating toll. The Commission is confident that this further donation will make a positive contribution to the work the many aid agencies are undertaking to treat those who have contracted cholera and reduce the likelihood of the epidemic spreading further."
