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Jun - 28 - 2025 Download The Version
Since the outbreak of the armed conflict in Yemen in 2015, the country has entered a vortex of overlapping crises that have affected all aspects of life, gradually turning it into one of the world's largest humanitarian crises. With the intensification of the armed conflict between the internationally recognized Yemeni government and the Houthi group, and amid complex regional and international interventions, the Yemen’s infrastructure has suffered near-total collapse. Development indicators have plummeted, leading to widespread poverty, high displacement rates, and a vast expansion of humanitarian needs to include more than two-thirds of the country’s population. In this dire context, international aid played a critical role in preventing total collapse, as millions of families relied on it to meet their basic needs amid the failure of the country’s institutions. Donors, through UN agencies and humanitarian organizations, provided cumulative funding exceeding $29 billion since 2015, supporting key sectors such as food security, healthcare, water, education, and shelter. In addition to UN-coordinated funding, Yemen also received direct humanitarian and development assistance outside this framework from countries including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, the United States of America, Turkey, Qatar, and others. This assistance came in the form of direct support for relief programs, medical aid, fuel derivatives, and infrastructure development. Nevertheless, recent years have seen a concerning decline in donor commitments, both within and outside the UN framework, especially in 2025, which recorded the lowest funding coverage for the 2025 UN Humanitarian Response Plan, in Yemen, in over a decade, with only 9% of needs met by May. This reflects the significant funding challenges facing the humanitarian system in Yemen and puts the fate of millions in need in jeopardy. This decline came at a highly sensitive moment, as Yemen entered 2025 with alarming statistics: more than 19.5 million people in need of humanitarian assistance. The consequences were not limited to the humanitarian domain; they also extended to the national economy, which is undergoing near-total collapse. Yemen has lost approximately $90 billion in GDP since the start of the war in 2015, and over 600,000 people have lost their jobs. About 58% of the population live in extreme poverty. This Report is an attempt to shed light on the complex consequences of the shrinking humanitarian funding in Yemen, examining its direct impact on beneficiaries, its economic and social implications, and its effect on the overall humanitarian system. It focuses particularly on the implications of the cessation of U.S. funding, which has historically represented the largest share among Yemen’s international donors. The report also reviews the main features of Yemen’s humanitarian funding over recent years, analyzes current funding gaps, and provides an initial framework of alternative options to mitigate harm and strengthen community resilience.
Since the outbreak of the armed conflict in Yemen in 2015, the country has entered a vortex of overlapping crises that have affected all aspects of life, gradually turning it into one of the world's largest humanitarian crises. With the intensification of the armed conflict between the internationally recognized Yemeni government and the Houthi group, and amid complex regional and international interventions, the Yemen’s infrastructure has suffered near-total collapse. Development indicators have plummeted, leading to widespread poverty, high displacement rates, and a vast expansion of humanitarian needs to include more than two-thirds of the country’s population.
In this dire context, international aid played a critical role in preventing total collapse, as millions of families relied on it to meet their basic needs amid the failure of the country’s institutions. Donors, through UN agencies and humanitarian organizations, provided cumulative funding exceeding $29 billion since 2015, supporting key sectors such as food security, healthcare, water, education, and shelter. In addition to UN-coordinated funding, Yemen also received direct humanitarian and development assistance outside this framework from countries including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, the United States of America, Turkey, Qatar, and others. This assistance came in the form of direct support for relief programs, medical aid, fuel derivatives, and infrastructure development.
Nevertheless, recent years have seen a concerning decline in donor commitments, both within and outside the UN framework, especially in 2025, which recorded the lowest funding coverage for the 2025 UN Humanitarian Response Plan, in Yemen, in over a decade, with only 9% of needs met by May. This reflects the significant funding challenges facing the humanitarian system in Yemen and puts the fate of millions in need in jeopardy.
This decline came at a highly sensitive moment, as Yemen entered 2025 with alarming statistics: more than 19.5 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.
The consequences were not limited to the humanitarian domain; they also extended to the national economy, which is undergoing near-total collapse. Yemen has lost approximately $90 billion in GDP since the start of the war in 2015, and over 600,000 people have lost their jobs. About 58% of the population live in extreme poverty.
This Report is an attempt to shed light on the complex consequences of the shrinking humanitarian funding in Yemen, examining its direct impact on beneficiaries, its economic and social implications, and its effect on the overall humanitarian system. It focuses particularly on the implications of the cessation of U.S. funding, which has historically represented the largest share among Yemen’s international donors. The report also reviews the main features of Yemen’s humanitarian funding over recent years, analyzes current funding gaps, and provides an initial framework of alternative options to mitigate harm and strengthen community resilience.