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In recent weeks, many Yemeni families in the Al-Hujariya region, spread across the Yemeni governorates of Lahj and Taiz, have been including types of plant leaves in their meals, after a decline in food aid provided by international organizations, and the World Food Program’s intention to reduce the number of beneficiaries of its aid.

While accusations have been directed at local officials and relief agencies that they forced the World Food Program to reduce its food aid; The program announced a decline in the funding provided for relief aid in Yemen, while its local officials say the reasons for the reduction are due to inaccurate data on benefit, and improve the income of some families based on a study carried out by the program over the past two years.

In the Taiz Governorate alone, the program removed more than 33,000 cases of aid beneficiaries, which represents 38 percent of the need of families in the government’s exempt areas, and Al-Maqtara Directorate saw of Lahj administration that more than 840 families were removed. from the lists of those targeted for aid.

A sharp decline in the food rations given to the Yemenis was accompanied by a decrease in the number of beneficiaries over the past years (AFP)

Nabil Taha, a government employee in Taiz Governorate, rejects the justification of local officials in the World Food Program for the improvement of family income, indicating that the improvement is only in studies and studies of international organizations, but on the ground the opposite is true.

Taha explains to Asharq Al-Awsat that whoever lives in reality will notice a decline in shopping activity in the markets, an increase in the number of needy people, an intensive distribution of beggars, and an increase in markets for used goods. and collectibles, which. households use sales to meet their growing living needs, especially with the decline in the value of the local currency against foreign currencies, a decline in purchasing power, and a freeze in workers’ wages. work

He explained that families who use food baskets do not sell out of abundance, but to get money to meet other obligations, including the need to buy clothes, medicines or school supplies for their children.

Accelerated decline

About two months ago, the World Food Program announced that it would be forced to make further reductions in the food aid programs it provides to millions across Yemen, due to the severe funding crisis that has been faced since the end of September last year, indicating that this would affect all his main programs.

Some UN agencies are still providing food aid due to the significant reduction in aid from the World Food Program (United Nations).

Local sources in the areas of Al-Maqtara in Lahj Governorate, and Al-Shamayatain in Taiz Governorate, said that residents have used the leaves of some plants to include in their daily food, which decreased from three to two meals for many families.

The sources indicated to Asharq Al-Awsat that in the past months many of these plants, such as “halas, dhah, and bakla,” had grown as a result of the heavy rains observed in different parts of the country, to contribute to their use. to bring back food recipes obtained from previous times where the Yemenis were suffering from drought and hunger.

According to sources, many people have started harvesting and selling these plants as a temporary occupation that allows them to collect some money. They sell it at low prices to the elderly or families whose individuals are unable to collect it, and it is also sold in markets far from the growing areas.

The head of the official relief committee in the Yemeni government, Jamal Balfqih, indicates that the reduction of the relief programs in aid to the Yemenis happened gradually over several years, after the number of people targeted was 12 million people from the crisis began. , and from 2018 they have been reduced by 30 percent, until they reached The final percentage reached 60 percent.

A displaced Yemeni in Hajjah Governorate (northwest) prepares food from plant leaves six years ago (AP)

According to what Belfaqih told Asharq Al-Awsat, the food basket was enough for families for a whole month, and 6 years ago its size started to decrease than before, and it continued to decrease until 2021, and after that the circulation cycle started to decrease every month. two months.

Until this year, the amount of aid does not exceed 20 kilograms of flour instead of 70 kilograms before.

International failure

The food basket no longer contains more than 4 liters of oil and 3 kilograms of legumes, while rice is sometimes available and disappears at other times.

According to Belfaqih, who is also an adviser to the Minister of Local Administration in the Yemeni government, during this year, donors gave only $700 million to the response plan, and organizations working in Yemen began to reduce their programs, including the World Food Program, which receive the lion’s share of funding for response plans, and is one of the reasons for suspending aid.

However, Belfaqih emphasizes that the failure to properly market the Yemeni humanitarian situation is the most important reason for the decline in funding, and in addition, no progress has been seen in the humanitarian situation in the past years when response plans were presented in amounts. exceeded one billion and 300 million dollars, and on the other hand, all the numbers were repeated, Instead, it is increasing, showing the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, according to him.

Yemeni children help their families receive food relief aid (AFP)

A report by the United Nations Program about two months ago revealed that food insecurity in Yemen rose to unprecedented levels in August last year, contrary to what was said in the statements of local relief officials about improvement in the standard of living of the Yemenis.

At the same time, an official source in Taiz Governorate denied that Governor Nabil Sassan had any responsibility or interference in omitting the names of thousands of beneficiaries from the World Food Program lists. he is surprised that these accusations came from social groups, which are supposed to collaborate with the official authorities to find other options to compensate those who have gone wrong. The Community Monitoring Committee accused the local authority and the Governor of Taiz, Nabil Shassan, of being responsible for dropping the names of beneficiaries from the World Food Program lists.

The responsible source indicated, in his statement to Asharq Al-Awsat, that the UN program was the one that decided to reduce the number of beneficiaries of its aid, after a survey it carried out, and after consultation to stick with the local workers and reach an understanding. with them.