FAO provides livestock inputs for rural families to sustain food production amidst soaring levels of food insecurity

The intervention is expected to safeguard livelihoods, enhance resilience of affected communities and promote early recovery

April 20, 2021

A female dairy farmer in Lahj governorate. Livestock represents one of the remaining lifelines for most people in remote parts of the country (©FAO/UNCJ, 2021).

18 April 2021- Sana’a: The livestock sector in Yemen has been significantly affected by a conflict spanning six years, yet it is one of the remaining lifelines and income sources for the rural population. To increase the resilience of vulnerable livestock-dependent households, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) is distributing livestock input packages to over 11,500 livestock farmers in Yemen’s Abyan and Lahj governorates.

The input packages, which include 340 metric tonnes of wheat bran, 690 metric tonnes of feed block and 400 metric tonnes of molasses, are being distributed as part of a three-year programme titled “Supporting Resilient Livelihoods and Food Security in Yemen (ERRY II)”. The programme is implemented jointly with the International Labour Organization (ILO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the World Food Programme (WFP)with funding from the European Union (EU) and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA). 

“According to the latest IPC statistics, 16.2 million people - 54 percent of the total population in Yemen are likely to experience acute food insecurity by June this year’’, said Hussein Gadain, FAO Representative in Yemen. “Interventions such as these, aim to save livelihoods through the provision of quality inputs and supplies to the most vulnerable Yemeni communities to enhance their resilience and improve their food security and nutrition’’, he added. Mr. Gadain emphasized that the process through which FAO procures and distributes inputs to beneficiaries is undertaken according to rigorous protocols and procedures to ensure the delivery of inputs of the highest quality, and FAO’s global network of technical experts remain committed to uphold these standards.

Under the ERRYII, FAO aims to strengthen livelihood options and shore up productive assets of more than 370 000 vulnerable people, focusing on the most vulnerable populations such as unemployed youth, women, and other marginalized groups in far remote areas. “By prioritizing livelihood programmes that increase food and livestock production, diversifying income sources and developing value chains, FAO is equipping Yemeni families with the tools they need to restore their livelihoods to cope with the conflict-induced crisis.” said Mulugeta Shibru, the FAO’s Yemen Program Officer.

As millions of Yemenis continue to endure the consequences of the ongoing conflict, urgent action is needed to protect, rebuild and restore agricultural productivity and create livelihood opportunities to reduce the alarming levels of food insecurity and nutrition while stimulating economic recovery.  FAO is seeking 90 million dollars to reduce acute food insecurity and safeguard the livelihoods of 6.3 million vulnerable people in 2021.