United Nations: 79% of the displaced people in Ma'rib camps live in extreme poverty
English - Thursday 08 April 2021 الساعة 05:51 pm
Aden, NewsYemen:
The United Nations said that 79% of the population of displaced persons camps in Marib are women and children, and live in extreme poverty, and that most of them resort to reducing the number of meals, child labor, and early marriage.
A report issued by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on the humanitarian situation in Marib stated that the humanitarian needs in the governorate are increasing with the escalation of the fighting that affects civilians, and leads to new displacements in the districts of Jabal Murad, Maddhal, Raghwan, Jawba, and Serwah.
He pointed out that the majority of the displaced are from Serwah or inside it, as families flee for the second or third time from 3 of the largest hosting sites, which are: Al-Zour camps, Dhina Al-Sawabin, and Dhina Al-Hayal.
The report stated that 90% of displaced families live in extreme poverty, with less than 1.4 dollars a day. They also often depend on the support of their friends and relatives and outside assistance to meet their basic needs, including food, shelter, health, water and sanitation.
He explained that the most vulnerable displaced families, 30% of those assessed, have no income, and that they are more likely to resort to harmful coping mechanisms, including reducing the number of meals, not visiting health facilities, or resorting to child labor and early marriage for their survival.
The report said that about 40% of displaced families are living in makeshift shelters and unfinished buildings. And those who have found rented homes struggle to pay rent regularly.
The UN report indicated that about a quarter of the assessed children do not go to school, as Marib hosts nearly a million displaced Yemenis from all over the country, and most of them have sought refuge there since the beginning of the Yemeni crisis in 2015.
He emphasized that public services and infrastructure cannot cope with the large influx of internally displaced persons, and that most of the newly displaced families have resorted to the overcrowded and deprived existing hosting sites in the districts of Sirwah, Marib City, Wadi, Jawba and adjacent areas, where lack of resources, access restrictions and insecurity are increasingly hampering Delivering aid to civilians in Marib, with dire consequences for the most vulnerable.
During the period between February 20 and March 30, UNHCR and its partners, according to the report, conducted protection monitoring exercises to assess the needs and priorities of some 16,300 displaced people in Marib, including those displaced due to the recent escalation.
The results showed that water, sanitation and hygiene facilities are inadequate, as 25% of displaced families do not have access to toilets or hand washing facilities near their shelters.
Displaced families are also struggling to obtain drinking, cooking and washing water. About 41% of the assessed families reported that they had to walk more than 15 minutes to access water.
According to the UN report, more than 92% of the assessed families have received food aid in the past three months to meet their most urgent needs, and that they will need cash 97.9%, non-food items 97%, shelter 89.7%, and water and sanitation services. Health 86.7%.
