The decline of Yemen’s economy due to conflict has had a major impact on people’s well-being. Since the recent conflict in 2015, food prices have doubled and the cost of basic living, measured by the Survival Minimum Expenditure basket has increased fourfold. Food is available in markets, but fewer and fewer Yemenis are able to afford it. As a result, 24.1 million Yemenis, 80% of the population are in need of humanitarian assistance.
17 million Yemenis rely on food assistance and over a third of households report inadequate food consumption (HNO 2019, WFP VAM 08/2019, FEWSNET 10/2019).
Yemen is almost entirely reliant on imports, accounting for more than 90% of food items. As a result, any shocks to Yemen’s economy are passed on almost directly to consumers as higher prices. Given the already dire food security situation, Yemenis are not able to absorb further shocks. Economic competition between the north and south has impacted heavily on prices, particularly for fuel.
