UN aid to Yemen criticised as ‘unacceptably poor’ by independent report

An independent report into the UN’s response to the humanitarian crisis in Yemen has found that the aid provided was of “unacceptably poor quality”.

The conflict in Yemen, which broke out in 2014, has been called “the world’s worst humanitarian crisis” with tens of thousands people injured, and millions more displaced or facing the risk of starvation.

The report, produced for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) found that while the UN’s operations in Yemen had saved lives and improved food security, construction of essential facilities and infrastructure was “sub-standard”.

It said that camps for internally displaced people had been built without toilets, roads had been left unfinished, schools had been poorly built, and agricultural equipment provided had been faulty.

Equipment for hospitals also did not work, with X-ray machines for example left unused because ink was not provided.

The report found that Yemenis could not access aid because of a failure to provide them with information on how to get on aid lists and a lack of coordination between UN departments.

It also found that UN staff were too concerned about their own security to visit needy communities, calling this “bunkerisation”. The report criticised the UN’s security measures as “excessive”.

“The UN operation in Yemen has saved lives but despite the unprecedented $16bn humanitarian operation, Yemen is still just hanging by a thread,” Lewis Sida, the head of the Yemen Inter-Agency evaluation team which produced the report said.

“The aid work from across the UN agencies has slowed but not prevented the collapse of basic services, and the situation remains incredibly fragile for most Yemenis,” he added.

The report concluded that the poor coordination and response from the UN agencies had managed to keep Yemen “on life support” but had not improved the lives of ordinary Yemenis.

“The most vulnerable groups – women, children, elderly and people with disabilities – have suffered the most but their basic needs have not been addressed,” Abeer Alabsi, a member of the evaluation team said.

The current conflict in Yemen began in 2014 when Iran-backed Houthi rebels took control of the capital Sana’a, forcing the internationally recognised government to flee to Aden.

A Saudi-led coalition of Arab states intervened against the Houthis in 2015, leading to a protracted and complex war. A truce was agreed earlier this year but it remains fragile.