Norway increases support for hunger victims in Yemen

YemenYemenis present documents in order to receive food rations provided by a local charity, in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, April, 13, 2017. A Saudi-led coalition launched a campaign in support of Yemen's internationally recognized government in March 2015. The stalemated war has pushed the Arab world's poorest country to the brink of famine. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)

Norway increases humanitarian support for Yemen, where 18.8 million people are threatened by starvation.

The Norwegian support for Yemen will be NOK 212 million this year, almost NOK 100 million more than last year, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs states.

– The humanitarian situation in Yemen is very dramatic and the civilian population is exposed to much suffering every day, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Børge Brende, said at a conference on Yemen in Geneva, Tuesday.

The Norwegian support is channelled through several UN organizations, the Red Cross and other humanitarian organizations which cooperate with local partners in Yemen.

Norway also contributes through the World Bank, the United Nations Emergency Fund (CERF) and the fund ‘Education Cannot Wait’.

According to the UN, this year alone NOK 18 billion is needed to meet the needs of Yemen, but so far, the Member States have only pledged to give 15 percent of this.

– More humanitarian aid must be mobilized rapidly for Yemen and aid workers must be secured humanitarian access, Brende said.

He calls for a peace agreement in the country where the Houthi militia and their allies have been under attack from a Saudi-led coalition since March 2015.

– A political solution based on negotiations is needed to end to the suffering of the Yemeni civilian population. Norway therefore supports the UN Special Representative’s attempt to bring the parties back to the negotiating table as soon as possible. It is important that UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has announced that Yemen is one of the countries he will prioritize, Brende said.

 
Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today