In response to the growing number of people displaced by fighting in northern Yemen, Islamic Relief is supporting the construction of a new camp which will provide them with shelter and basic services such as water and healthcare.
More than 150,000 people have already fled their homes because of continued fighting between government forces and rebel groups in Saa'da in the north of Yemen. While some are still trapped in Saa'da, living with host families or homeless, a growing number are moving into camps in neighbouring governorates such as Hajjah and Amran.
Islamic Relief is currently working with a national organisation to improve the living conditions for the 7,000 displaced people living in Al Mazrak camp in Hajjah by redesigning the camp. Sustained and intense fighting has caused a continuous stream of people to turn up at this camp, with around 30 new families arriving every day. To help deal with this demand for assistance, Islamic Relief is working with UNHCR and the local government to set up a second camp, Al Mazrak 2, five kilometres from the original site.
Islamic Relief is currently developing a site plan for the new camp which will initially house 1,000 displaced families. We will then help construct, coordinate and support the management of both sites to ensure the needs of the displaced people are met.
Arif Khan, Islamic Relief's Camp Site Planner at Al Mazrak said, "The Islamic Relief team has been working quickly to select the site, design and build the new camp, and have been continually consulting the displaced people on the design for the new camp to ensure it meets their needs. All this has been done in coordination with the UN, the local government, and other NGOs, and the progress we have made so far is down to this collective effort."
"It is important that the design of the new camp provides people with security while also being culturally appropriate. It incorporates natural features such as trees and streams, provides space for livestock, meeting places, a women's centre, rainwater collection and services such as healthcare and education."
Islamic Relief has been responding to the needs of the people affected by the conflict in northern Yemen since it intensified in August. So far we have distributed emergency food aid to 36,512 people in Saa'da and Hajjah. We are also preparing to begin food distributions in Amran, Al Jawf and Baqim as soon as the security situation allows.
Rising food prices, limited access to basic food items and underlying poverty have left 27 per cent of children in Saa'da malnourished according to the WFP. Displaced people are also at risk from food shortages and malnutrition, leaving them vulnerable to serious diseases. Islamic Relief has recently received additional funding from DfID to allow us to support malnourished children by providing them with highly nutritious food.
For more information and media enquiries please contact: Helen Mould on 0044 121 622 0719
[ Any views expressed in this article are those of the writer and not of Reuters. ]
U.N. Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes addresses a news conference in Sanaa October 11, 2009. Holmes said the first relief convoy crossed the Saudi border ...
