In March, the crisis in Yemen entered its sixth year. The scale, severity and complexity of needs in Yemen continue to stagger. Some 24 million people, 80 per cent of the entire population require some form of assistance or protection and close to half of all families are in acute need. The conflict has also compromised access to health; only 50 per cent of health facilities in Yemen are functioning, of which 20 per cent provide maternal and child healthcare; services are restricted further by intermittent electricity and power outages across the country.

Yemen’s economy has been badly fractured by half a decade of war. In the first quarter of 2020, economic forecasts indicate that macro-economic conditions are likely to continue deteriorating. The situation is exacerbated by lack of humanitarian access to people in urgent need of assistance, and a shortage of funding. UNFPA's response remains funded at 41 percent of an appeal of $100.5 million for its response in 2020.