2 April 2024, Aden, Yemen – To better protect one of the most vulnerable populations in the world from pandemic threats, Yemen has today launched the Pandemic Preparedness and Response Project (PPRP).

The virtual launch event was complemented by satellite in-person events in Aden, Republic of Yemen; Amman, Jordan; and Washington, D.C., United States of America. The event was attended by His Excellency Dr Qasem Buhaibeh, Minister of Public Health and Population; His Excellency Major General Salem Abdullah Al Soqatri, Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Fisheries; and Priya Basu, Executive Head of the Pandemic Fund Secretariat.

Also present were representatives of the PPRP implementing agencies: the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Bank. Senior government officials, Health Cluster partners, and members of civil society and the public also joined the event.

The new PPRP will run for 3 years. Its goal is to protect and improve the health and well-being of Yemen’s people, livestock and ecosystems by strengthening the country’s ability to prevent, detect and rapidly respond to endemic and pandemic threats.

This goal will be achieved by pursuing the following 4 objectives:

Reinforce disease prevention, early warning, surveillance, detection and response capabilities through a One Health approach and at points of entry.

Improve health and veterinary laboratory capacities to confirm health threats and enhance biosafety and biosecurity.

Strengthen multisectoral workforce capacities from the community level up.

Enhance coordination, data sharing, communication and accountability among One Health stakeholders.

Delivery of these objectives will be supported by a US$ 26 million grant from the Pandemic Fund, and complementary action under other World Bank grants. These other grants include the Emergency Human Capital Project (2021–2024), implemented by UNICEF, WHO and UNOPS, with funding to date of US$ 448 million.

The Pandemic Fund grant also builds on the legacy of past successful investments that have strengthened outbreak preparedness and response, including the Yemen COVID-19 Response Project (2020–2022), implemented by WHO and the World Bank, and the Emergency Health and Nutrition Project (2017–2022), implemented by UNICEF and WHO with World Bank support.

Speaking at the launch, H.E. Dr Qasem Buhaibeh, Minister of Public Health and Population, reflected on Yemen’s commitment to improve pandemic preparedness and response: “Guided by WHO’s International Health Regulations, we are striving to raise our defences against persistent disease threats. This requires all-of-society action, and I hope everyone here today will join us in this effort.”

In recent years, building on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, Yemen has started to routinely deliver on the International Health Regulations (IHR) core capacities, such as IHR State Parties Self-Assessment Annual Report (SPAR). The country also conducted its first WHO joint external evaluation of IHR capacities in 2023 and is developing the first Yemen National Action Plan for Health Security, building on the findings and recommendations of these assessments.

H.E. Major General Salem Abdullah Al Soqatri, Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation and Fisheries, emphasized the importance of multisectoral collaboration: “We know a whole host of threats exist at the animal–human interface – using a One Health approach, with strong coordination at all levels, we can mitigate this risk and better protect ourselves and other countries.”

Dr Priya Basu, Executive Head of the Pandemic Fund, who joined virtually from the USA, said: "In partnership with the Government of Yemen, WHO, FAO, and UNICEF, the Pandemic Fund is proud to launch this innovative project aimed at fortifying Yemen against future major health threats. By enhancing digital surveillance capabilities and ensuring timely and effective response mechanisms are in place, alongside efforts to bolster laboratory systems and build a highly skilled health workforce, our project will significantly advance the country's pandemic preparedness and response capacities.”

WHO Representative to Yemen Dr Arturo Pesigan confirmed the need for broad-based action for pandemic preparedness and response, stating: “At WHO, we often say health systems strengthening is everybody’s business. I’d like to expand on this to say pandemic preparedness and response is everybody’s business.”

UNICEF Representative to Yemen Peter Hawkins stressed that "In a world still vulnerable to the impact of pandemics, our resilience will be measured by our ability to prepare diligently and respond swiftly. Every child must be protected from the threat of emerging diseases.”

PPRP is expected to make valuable contributions to Yemen’s preparedness and response capacities. Efforts will include, with WHO support, expanding and enhancing integrated disease surveillance and response. This will be done by leveraging and improving existing platforms such as the electronic Integrated Disease Early Warning System (eIDEWS) and rapid response teams positioned in each of the country’s 333 districts. The support will also help to sustain Yemen’s 12 central public health laboratories and enhance sample transportation systems.

FAO will support action to enhance surveillance for zoonotic diseases and agricultural laboratories and UNICEF will enhance community-based surveillance across the country. This work will be done in collaboration with WHO and the health authorities. At every step of the way, civil society will be engaged – to mobilize communities for pandemic action, and to ensure project accountability for the delivery of effective results.

The launch served as a crucial moment to showcase Yemen’s commitment to – and the support of local and international partners for – pandemic preparedness and response, and to mobilize broad action to protect communities from pandemic threats.

So far, the project has set up routine coordination meetings as well as a One Health coordination platform, bringing together the Ministry of Public Health and Population, the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Fisheries, WHO, FAO and other key stakeholders. PPRP focal points have been assigned at each implementing agency and the relevant ministries. Granular technical plans are under development, along with a civil society network for pandemic action.

A joint coordination committee, made up of representatives of government entities and partner organizations, is also being set up. This will regularly review progress, discuss challenges, and provide guidance on the project’s overall strategic direction.

About the Pandemic Fund

The Pandemic Fund – a multistakeholder partnership – was developed by the World Bank, in close collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other partners. It was established as a Financial Intermediary Fund at the World Bank in September 2022, launched in November 2022 at the G20 meetings in Bali, Indonesia, and has come together to deliver financing at record speed. The Fund is an innovative addition to the international health financing toolkit, a first-of-its-kind multilateral platform dedicated to making investments in pandemic prevention and preparedness in low- and middle-income countries. It has the flexibility to work through a variety of institutions, complementing efforts, drawing in co-financing, and promoting coordination on the ground; most importantly, it incentivizes countries to prioritize this agenda and increase their own efforts. The Fund’s operating model involves collaboration with governments, WHO, other United Nations agencies, multilateral development banks, global health initiatives, the private sector, philanthropic institutions, and civil society.

1 April 2024  – A couple of years back, a house full of life and warmth dissolved into ruins amid the conflict that was ongoing in Al Hudaydah governorate. With a heavy heart, Maisa describes the loss of her home to war: “I was once above the sky to finally have a home of my own with my little family, and now what we once had as our home turned into rubble, ripping away all the joy I once had.”

The ongoing conflict in Yemen has inflicted devastating impacts on its people, especially children. The bombs stole not only Maisa’s roof, but also the joy of her family and the memories held in every corner of the house.

Two years have passed since Maisa and her family had to flee to Marib from the clutches of the war in Al Hudaydah. Now Maisa lives with her husband and 2 children, along with her husband’s 3 sisters and their parents, in a camp for internally displaced people in Marib city. The family members are split between 2 tents and share a single bathroom. Living conditions are cramped in the overcrowded camp.

Since Maisa’s family moved to Marib, her husband struggles to find consistent daily work and secure basic necessities. The conflict has crippled the country’s economy as well as its health system, and the family constantly worry about how they will afford their next meal. The deteriorating economic situation, a direct result of the conflict, has made food insecurity worse, causing millions to face the threat of starvation. As a result, levels of undernutrition, among children especially, are rising, leaving millions vulnerable to malnutrition and illness.

“My husband works for daily wages,” Maisa explains, “but there’s no guarantee of work every day. The constant worry about our next meal is a heavy burden.”

The conflict has unleashed immense suffering on the people of Yemen. Displacement adds yet more agony to families like Maisa’s who must endure extreme poverty, malnutrition and illness, coupled with the harsh conditions of living in a camp. Maisa’s 8-month-old son, Hassan, exemplifies this struggle.

Hassan was diagnosed with severe acute malnutrition after being referred to the WHO-supported therapeutic feeding centre (TFC) at Al Shahid Mohammed Hael Hospital, Marib. He struggles to sleep or breastfeed properly. This is not Hassan’s first battle with malnutrition; conditions in the camp have caused him to relapse.

“My child has been frail from the moment he was born, and now his condition is improving, I just wish I could maintain the health of my child,” says Maisa. “I live in constant fear [of] losing him to malnutrition and disease.”

WHO, along with the Central Emergency Response Fund, plays a critical role in supporting 23 TFCs across Yemen, providing essential medical supplies, laboratory supplies and water, sanitation and hygiene supplies, and covering oxygen refilling costs. WHO also supports nearly 395 health workers with performance-based payments to maintain life-saving health and nutrition services. The health workers have gone beyond the provision of life-saving services provision to apply preventive measures too, in the form of both infant and young child feeding counselling, and mental health and psychosocial support.

These 23 TFCs provide all their services free of charge, while consistently meeting the quality standard of life-saving health and nutrition services. This ensures access to life-saving treatment for thousands of children like Hassan. With the WHO support, the centres have so far treated about 8774 severely malnourished children aged under 5 years. Nearly 97% of these children have recovered and been referred to the outpatient therapeutic feeding programme for follow-up.

“I could have lost him if it wasn’t for the free-of-charge treatment here ¬– for that, I’m very grateful for WHO for saving my child,” says Maisa, of Hassan. “I wish that my children remain healthy and have regular meals. Every mother wishes to be able to save her children from agony and turn their suffering into happiness.”

*Note: The beneficiary is in a hard-to-reach location, and was only accessible via phone. The images used are expressive and are not related to the person or location mentioned.

5 March 2024, Aden, Yemen – In just 4 days, a polio immunization campaign in Yemen has reached more than 1.29 million children aged under 5 years. Overall, the campaign achieved 101% coverage, with a range of 89% to over 100%. Yemen’s Ministry of Public Health and Population collaborated with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) to deliver this successful campaign.

“This is an important step to protect children from deadly childhood diseases. With confirmed cases of polio among Yemeni children, an imminent threat persists. This is an ongoing risk to the life of every unvaccinated child. Health authorities and donors must continue to work together to ensure universal immunization coverage for all children across Yemen,” said Peter Hawkins, UNICEF Representative in Yemen.

“This is a major achievement in advancing the health outcomes and well-being of children in Yemen. Poliovirus and other childhood diseases can cause permanent disabilities and, in many cases, death. But a small dose of vaccine can provide the necessary protection. There is no reason for children to die of vaccine-preventable diseases. Children are the future, and all investment in their health is an investment in the development of the country,” said Dr Arturo Pesigan, WHO Representative in Yemen.

The campaign was implemented with the generous support of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative. Through this campaign, Yemen joined more than 35 countries in using the novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2), which has been granted WHO prequalification. The success of the campaign also resulted from joining forces with health providers who worked hard to reach unvaccinated and zero-dose children to reduce the spread of the disease.

Notes to editors

From 2021 to 2023, Yemen reported 237 variant poliovirus type 2 cases – both circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) and vaccine-derived poliovirus (VDPV). These are known to emerge in contexts of chronic underimmunization. The cases came from 117 districts, and 90% of the affected children were aged under 5 years, while 10% of cases were older children.

Low vaccination coverage and vaccine hesitancy leave children vulnerable to outbreaks of potentially fatal diseases that can easily be prevented. Organized and widespread antivaccination campaigns that misinform the public have also prevented the effective control of disease outbreaks in many communities.

More information

Polio outbreak in Yemen: situation update

Poliomyelitis (polio) 

Media contacts

WHO Yemen Communications

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UNICEF Yemen Communications

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