UN Issues Warning on Worsening Child Malnutrition in Yemen

(MENAFN) The United Nations issued a stark warning Tuesday about the critical nutrition emergency facing Yemen’s children, pressing for urgent financial support to expand emergency food and nutrition aid.

According to Ramesh Rajasingham, director of the Coordination Division at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, briefing the Security Council on behalf of UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Tom Fletcher, half of Yemeni children under five are suffering from acute malnutrition, while nearly half experience stunted growth.

Rajasingham emphasized that the crisis is causing serious developmental delays and widespread infections among children, with the risk of death from common illnesses soaring to nine to 12 times above the norm. In a nation where healthcare is severely limited and essential support services are largely inaccessible, he described the situation as a life-or-death gamble for the youngest and most vulnerable.

"More than 17 million people are going hungry. This figure may crest 18 million by February next year. Women and children bear the brunt of this disaster," he warned.

Yemen stands among the most food-insecure nations globally, as its economy continues to crumble and food supply chains face escalating pressure. Many families that have access to food can no longer afford to buy it. Rajasingham highlighted that the conflict has severely disrupted livelihoods across public sectors, agriculture, and fisheries.

In some areas, the hunger and malnutrition crisis is extreme. In camps for internally displaced persons in Hajjah’s Abs District, a July “needs assessment mission” uncovered cases of children dying from starvation.

Rural families in several governorates are forced to sell vital assets—livestock, tools, and farmland—sacrificing their future sustainability just to secure food for the immediate day, Rajasingham reported.

He also pointed out that the crisis is forcing children into labor instead of school, while women and adolescent girls face escalating threats of domestic violence, exploitation, and child marriage.

Rajasingham called for direct financial contributions to the Yemen Humanitarian Fund, which plans to deploy $20 million to combat the worsening food insecurity.

Reaffirming the need for a political resolution, he stated, "Without it, current cycles of violence -- local and regional -- along with economic devolution and endemic humanitarian need, will persist."

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