Yemen's Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Waed Abdullah Badhib said Friday that the World Bank approved a $127 million grant to preserve food security and protect livelihoods in Yemen.
The World Bank Board of Executive Directors also approved a $100 million grant from the International Development Association (IDA) and $27 million grant from the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) to improve food and nutrition security in the war-torn country.
In an interview with SABA news agency; Badhib said the new grant aims to provide nutritious food products to vulnerable the needy and to support restoration of agricultural production and further value chain building activities; to increase the sales of nutritious crops; livestock; and fish products.
He said the World Bank's grant comes in response to the efforts led by Yemeni ministers during their meetings with high-ranking WB directors at the Group's Spring Meetings.
Badhib also renewed the Yemeni government's appreciation to the World Bank directors and WB's office in Yemen; stressing that his country anticipates more strategic support from the group.
According to the World Bank; the newly approved funds bring total IDA grants in Yemen to $2.241 billion since 2016.
Tania Meyer; World Bank Country Manager for Yemen; said that "Yemen's food security crisis is dramatic and multi-faceted; with compounded challenges which adversely impact food prices and further households' incomes."
She said a comprehensive response will require even greater resource mobilization; strong partnerships across the humanitarian-development nexus; and also addressing the root causes of food insecurity.
The project's approval comes as WB revealed that in 2021; over 2.25 million children under the age of five are threatened with acute malnutrition in Yemen; including 395;000 of them expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition and could die without treatment.