50% of Yemeni children suffer from chronic malnutrition: Prime minister

Yemeni Prime Minister Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak announced Sunday that 50% of the country's children suffer from chronic malnutrition.

He made the statement during an event in Aden to mark World Population Day, which fell on July 11, according to Yemen's official Saba news agency.

Bin Mubarak emphasized that his government's vision focuses on people as the most important resource to be invested in and improved through dedicated services and programs, despite the significant challenges and financial and economic pressures the country faces.

He said among the challenges the government is facing is that 45% of the population is under 16 years old and 65% are of working age, while 50% of the country's children suffer from chronic malnutrition and 21% are stunted as a result.

Bin Mubarak said the seriousness of these figures necessitates serious engagement, a high level of responsibility and prioritizing them in all plans, programs and spending.

He also noted the financial and economic pressures facing the government in dealing with these challenges due to the ongoing war waged by the Houthi group, which has deprived the Yemeni people of benefiting from their resources, according to the agency.

Yemen's population is around 32 million, most of whom need humanitarian aid, according to previous UN reports.

Yemen is experiencing a severe economic crisis exacerbated by the cessation of oil exports in October 2022 due to attacks by the Houthis on oil ports in areas under government control.

For more than two years, Yemen has been experiencing a lull in a war that began nearly 10 years ago between government forces supported by a Saudi-led Arab military coalition and Houthi forces backed by Iran, who have controlled provinces and cities including the capital Sanaa since September 2014.