Hunger will keep rising in Yemen as the aid appeal stays under 15% funded, UN warns

On 3 June, FAO, WFP and UNICEF warned that families are being pushed beyond their ability to cope by economic collapse, climate shocks and falling humanitarian support. About 5 million people in government-controlled areas, 47% of the population there, face crisis levels of hunger or worse (UN News).

On 16 June, UN relief chief Tom Fletcher told the Security Council that the humanitarian appeal for Yemen was less than 15% funded. He said this was forcing aid operations to scale back, and that hunger would keep rising without urgent action (UN News).

More than 2.2 million children under five are acutely malnourished. Around 60% of Yemeni households depend at least partly on farming, which leaves them exposed to climate shocks (UN News).

Every funding cut has a human cost.

Tom Fletcher, UN Emergency Relief Coordinator, 16 June 2026

Key figures

• Humanitarian appeal less than 15% funded (UN News)
• About 5 million people in government-controlled areas at crisis level or worse (FAO, WFP, UNICEF, via UN News)
• More than 2.2 million children under five acutely malnourished (UN News)

Sources

• UN News: UN officials call for urgent action in Yemen to push peace, reduce hunger (16 June 2026)
• UN News: Yemen: Hunger crisis deepens as funding cuts leave millions without support (3 June 2026)

Photo: irwan zahuri / Pexels · Tarim, Hadhramaut, Yemen