Catholic Relief Services Yemen

Catholic Relief Services’ (CRS) president & CEO, Sean Callahan, joins 42 other CEOs of major international aid organizations calling on Congress to provide $1 billion in emergency funding for 2017 to address famine and food insecurity, particularly in South Sudan, Somalia, Nigeria and Yemen. The largest humanitarian crisis is in Yemen, where more than half of the country’s population is short of food, and more than 7 million people are in need of urgent food assistance.

Years of conflict and severe economic decline are driving the country to the brink of famine. Thousands of Yemenis have fled to neighboring countries. CRS has been working closely with local partners to provide vital water and sanitation support to prevent the spread of disease. The needs have been compounded by the COVID‑19 pandemic, especially in high‑risk communities with limited access to health care and clean water. CRS is expanding emergency programming to provide training for young Yemenis to work in understaffed heath facilities; strengthen health systems and water and sanitation infrastructure; and provide vulnerable communities with critical hygiene supplies and information to prevent the spread of COVID‑19.