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UN humanitarian office says almost 7 million face food insecurity in Yemen

15 December 2011 21:16 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has said that food insecurity is impacting almost 7 million people in the Middle Eastern nation of Yemen, UN associate spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters here Thursday, APA reports.

"The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reports that nearly 7 million people across Yemen are affected by food insecurity," Haq said at a daily news briefing. "A household survey currently under way is expected to reveal an even higher number of people who are severely food insecure."

Existing problems with poverty and food insecurity in Yemen have been exasperated by recent violence in the country and the resulting displacement of Yemenis from their homes.

Tensions between those calling for the ouster of Yemeni President Ali Abduallah Saleh and government forces began in January and led to Saleh’s resignation in November and the subsequent formation of a new unity government.

"Relief workers are distributing food to more than 350,000 displaced people in the country," Haq said. "For next year, aid agencies are asking for nearly 450 million (U.S.) dollars to assist almost four million people in Yemen."

An emergency response plan for 2012 was launched by OCHA on Dec. 14 in Geneva to help Yemen’s people with their humanitarian needs.