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Yemen Food Security Outlook Update August 2022

Pays
Yémen
Sources
FEWS NET
Date de publication
Origine
Voir l'original

Early season dryness and recent floods exacerbate food insecurity amid reduced assistance

KEY MESSAGES

• After abnormal dryness in the March to May first rainy season, heavy rain since mid-July has caused widespread flash flooding across 18 of Yemen’s 22 governorates, resulting in damage to critical infrastructure, homes, productive assets, and food stocks, with displacement sites worst affected. As of August 18, around 36,205 families had been affected, the majority of whom are in displacement sites. As a result of crop damage, prices of domestically produced foods including vegetables have increased further. Though flooding caused some to miss planting, aboveaverage rainfall in the July to September rainy season is likely to benefit farmers by reducing irrigation costs and improving crop production prospects, particularly in lowland areas.

• Importers have procured additional wheat in August following the resumption of Ukrainian exports. As such, shortages of staple wheat flour are no longer expected during the projection period. Staple wheat flour prices are now expected to remain generally stable overall, though at significantly above-average levels.

• As of August 17, only 42 percent of the 2022 Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan (YHRP) was funded. Last year, when funding was also a concern, 63 percent of the YHRP was funded. Continuous funding shortfalls have led the World Food Programme (WFP) to cut rations and reduce the frequency of food assistance distributions for most beneficiary households in 2022. In July, WFP provided emergency food assistance to 7.3 million people as part of the fourth cycle of distributions in 2022 to date. Nearly all beneficiaries received rations equivalent to less than 50 percent of total energy needs.

• The WFP is not currently taking steps to resume monthly assistance distributions, contrary to previously communicated plans. Rather, available information suggests that WFP is engaging local authorities in discussions regarding the continued provision of assistance at recently reduced levels. As such, it is no longer expected that WFP will scale back up to monthly assistance distributions in the projection period. Given the importance of humanitarian assistance for millions of poor households in Yemen—including high dependence among the displaced—millions of households are expected to face food consumption gaps during the projection period despite revised expectations for stable food prices and purchasing power.

• Given expectations for reduced assistance, Emergency (IPC Phase 4) outcomes are expected in Hajjah, Marib, Lahj, and Abyan during the agricultural off-season from August to October when access to food and income is seasonally limited. By November, most of these areas will likely see improvement back to Crisis! (IPC Phase 3!) given increased availability of food and income with the start of the main harvest. However, Emergency (IPC Phase 4) outcomes will likely persist in Marib through January, given the significant population of displaced households who are highly dependent on assistance.