Yemeni women, already facing challenging circumstances due to the country’s civil war, are now experiencing greater levels of food insecurity. The United Nations Population Fund estimates that one in three displaced families rely on women as their main breadwinners, with female-led households facing the highest levels of food insecurity. The situation is worsened by the fact that only a tiny percentage of women work outside the home in Yemen. Food aid from charities is scarce and Umm Adel, a mother of four from Taiz, explained that she often has to search for unripe food and gather wood for a fire to cook it. Yemen is already facing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, with 21.6 million people needing some form of aid in 2023, according to UN estimates.
The Yemeni government and the Iran-aligned Houthi rebels have been in conflict for eight years, causing a significant toll on the population, particularly women and children. Umm Adel is from Taiz, a city besieged by the Houthis for much of the war. She feels safer in the government-controlled capital, Sanaa, despite the daily struggles she faces there. More than 10 million women and girls were in need of assistance in 2021, according to the Yemen’s Civil Coalition for Human Rights and Women, and the conflict has led to women being forced into early marriages, losing breadwinners, and struggling to find healthcare and education.
The situation in Yemen is further compounded by the rising cost of food due to transportation costs, oil prices, and taxes. Mujahid Kamel, who runs a small grocery store in Sanaa, sees every day how poor and hungry his customers are. Starvation is a genuine threat for many Yemenis, and the World Food Programme has warned that the emergency response in Yemen was underfunded by 75% in 2022. Women, who are already vulnerable due to the ongoing conflict, are now facing even greater challenges in securing food for their families.
Source: BBC
