On 8 February, the United Nations and humanitarian partners launched the 2017 Humanitarian Response Plan, with an international appeal for US$2.1 billion to provide life-saving assistance to 12 million people in Yemen in 2017. This is the largest consolidated humanitarian appeal for Yemen to be ever launched. UNFPA, as part of this plan, has appealed for $22.1 million to meet the urgent sexual and reproductive health needs and prevent and respond to gender-based violence.

Highlights of UNFPA Response

• Seventy mobile teams providing reproductive health services reached some 100,000 people between January and February 2017, in the governorates of Aden, Al Dhale'e, Al Hudaydah, Amran, Ibb, Lahj, Sa’ada, Shabwah and Taizz.
• Twenty-eight thousand dignity kits were received in February and are positioned to be distributed in Al Hudaydah during March 2017.
• During violent clashes in the western coastal areas of Al Mukha and Dhubab in Taizz Governorate, UNFPA reached nearly 1,000 displaced women and girls with services to address gender-based violence.
• A total of 505 beneficiaries (415 female, 90 male) were reached with gender-based violence services in February, with the highest being for psychosocial support services (345), followed by health services support (201).
• A regional consultation with technical support from UNFPA's Arab States Regional Office and the WHO Regional Office was held to finalize Yemen’s new five-year reproductive, maternal and newborn health strategy and costed action plan.
• A training on cash-based interventions to address gender-based violence was conducted for members of the gender-based violence sub-cluster.
• A two-day workshop to improve protection and referral systems in responding to gender-based violence in Yemen was supported by UNFPA, under the patronage of Ministry of Social Affairs and in partnership the Women’s National Committee.
• Joint programme between UNICEF and UNFPA based on the Global Joint Programme on female genital mutilation/cutting resumed, aimed at accelerating the abandonment of this practice in Yemen.
• Funding proposals amounting to $10.6 million were submitted to the Kingdom of Netherlands, Government of Italy and Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency to finance UNFPA’s humanitarian response in Yemen.