Minister of Foreign Affairs ‘deeply concerned about situation in Yemen’

State Secretary Jens Frølich Holte is representing Norway at the virtual conference convened by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. The aim of the event is to focus attention on the crisis and increase funding for the humanitarian effort in Yemen.

Hostilities have escalated in some parts of the country. The UN estimates that 20 million Yemeni people will require humanitarian aid and protection this year. Nearly four million people have been internally displaced. Approximately 2.25 million children under the age of five are critically undernourished. The UN has warned that the food crisis is evolving into a famine on a scale the world has not seen for many decades.

‘The enormous humanitarian need in Yemen is man-made. It is vital that the parties to the conflict put the Yemeni people first, comply with international humanitarian law and ensure that humanitarian actors have safe and unimpeded access to all those in need. It is also crucial for the parties to engage in the UN-led political process. Only an inclusive, politically negotiated solution can bring this crisis to an end,’ said Ms Eriksen Søreide.

Norway’s humanitarian aid to Yemen is channelled through the UN, the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement and Norwegian humanitarian organisations working with local partners in Yemen. In addition to the earmarked funding pledged today, Norway has also contributed substantial support to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund and the International Committee of the Red Cross, among others.

To address the enormous challenges related to hunger and displacement, Norway has in 2021 substantially increased the core support to the World Food Programme (WFP) and the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), to NOK 800 million and NOK 680 million accordingly. The increased allocations to those organisations contribute to their global response, including the response to the hunger and displacement crisis in Yemen.