Two years into its political transition, Yemen, the poorest country of the Arabian Peninsula, continues to suffer from food insecurity and widespread poverty as the coalition government has struggled to jump-start the country’s ailing economy and work towards reducing high unemployment levels.
With little to no prospect, growing political instability and widespread insecurity, millions of Yemenis still battle with the realities of abject poverty: hunger, poor health and despair.
While in its last report on food insecurity in Yemen, WFP (World Food Program) noted a slight improvement in comparison to 2011, “due to a combination of continued humanitarian assistance, lower food prices in 2012 compared to 2011, and increased use of credit by households to purchase food,” the country remains at a critical crossroad. WFP established in December 2012 that 45% of households purchased foodstuffs on credit, an increase of 12 point since December 2011.
Because the country has slipped further down the poverty scale, families have had to dig deeper, putting their financial future in jeopardy to meet their most basic needs, a trend which economists have warned will only lead to further unrest, should it be allowed to go on much longer. Literally spent, Yemen is out of breath.
In a report published in February 2013, WFP wrote, “The food security outlook for the first half of 2013 is slightly worse than in 2012 as the causes of food insecurity will likely persist in 2013, aggravated by the impact of poor prospects for local agricultural production, estimated to be about 8% lower than 2012 and 10% below the last five year average.”
It added, “The main causes of food insecurity in Yemen include limited sources of income for the urban poor, fragile livelihood systems in rural areas, recent volatility of international food prices, lack of national strategic grain reserves, and continuing internal conflict and instability/insecurity in various parts of the country.”
Aware of the dangers of food insecurity, officials from the Planning and International Cooperation Ministry announced on Thursday they intend to work closely with aid organizations to re-address the balance and offer the most vulnerable some much needed respite.
Minister of Planning and International Cooperation, Mohammed al-Sa'adi confirmed at a meeting with Special Representative for UN Secretary-General for Food Security and Nutrition, David Nabarro, that Yemen is determined to tackle hunger and food insecurity as a matter of urgency.
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