UN seeks $4.27 billion in appeal for war-ravaged Yemen

A United Nations appeal for Yemen is aiming at raising $4.27 billion to alleviate what it describes as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, with 161,000 people likely to experience famine there in 2022

CAIRO -- A United Nations appeal for Yemen Wednesday is aiming at raising $4.27 billion to alleviate what it describes as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, with 161,000 people likely to experience famine there in 2022.

The virtual pledging conference is co-hosted by Sweden and Switzerland. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will address donors on the dire needs of the Arab world’s poorest country.

The conference comes as world attention is gripped by the war in Ukraine, which has overshadowed other humanitarian crisis across the world since the Russian invasion on Feb. 24 — raising concerns that that Yemen’s plight may be forgotten. Over 3 million people have fled Ukraine, which has seen Europe’s heaviest fighting since World War II.

Last year’s conference raised only some $1.7 billion for Yemen, out of $3.85 billion the U.N. had appealed for as the coronavirus pandemic and its devastating consequences hit economies around the globe. The U.N. chief called the 2021 result “disappointing.”