UNICEF, World Bank give cash to Yemenis to avert famine

Around 1.5 million of the most vulnerable families in Yemen have received cash from the UN children's fun UNICEF as part of an emergency project to avert the risk of famine in the conflict-ridden country, the agency reported Monday.

The UNICEF-World Bank emergency cash transfer project was launched in mid-2017 with a 200-million-dollar grant. Two payments have already been distributed to the most vulnerable Yemenis, with a third payment planned for August 2018.

"These emergency cash transfers contribute to avert the risk of famine and allow targeted families to buy food and medicine for their children, among them many malnourished," said Geert Cappelaere, UNICEF regional director.

Yemen, one of the Arab world's poorest countries, has been embroiled in a devastating conflict between the government, backed by Saudi Arabia, and the Iran-backed Houthi rebels.

The conflict, now in its fourth year, left 60 per cent of the population suffering from food insecurity, according to UNICEF. Around 8.4 million are at risk of starvation - a 24-per-cent-increase since April 2017.