Yemen Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan 2026 (March 2026)

Executive summary

Yemen enters 2026 in an increasingly complex operating environment, shaped also by severe funding constraints and a system-wide reform agenda. Millions of people continue to face dire humanitarian conditions, struggling to meet basic needs and access essential services amid protracted crisis, conflict-induced economic deterioration, displacement and climate-related shocks. As coping mechanisms erode, households are becoming more exposed to hunger, preventable diseases and protection risks, with vulnerable and marginalized groups-including women and girls, persons with disabilities, internally displaced persons (IDPs), migrants, refugees and the Muhamasheen-disproportionately affected. A highly challenging operational environment in de facto authorities (DFA)- controlled areas in 2025 particularly affecting UN actors, and substantial funding reductions, led to UN scaling back critical life-saving programmes in the final months of the year.

In 2026, more than 22 million people -including 10.95 million women and girls - will require humanitarian assistance and protection services across Yemen. This includes 5.2 million IDPs, 329,000 migrants, and 63,000 refugees and asylum seekers.

Acute food insecurity remains alarming: 18.3 million people are acutely food insecure, and the latest integrated phase classification (IPC) analysis indicates further deterioration, including districts shifting from crisis to emergency levels, and pockets of catastrophic conditions affecting some of the most fragile communities. Malnutrition levels remain critically high, with over 2.2 million children under five acutely malnourished including 516,157 with malnutrition (SAM). An additional 1.3 million pregnant and breastfeeding women are also expected to be malnourished. In 2026, 14.4 million people are expected to require wash, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) assistance with water scarcity and damaged infrastructure heightening health and WASH vulnerabilities. Essential services remain under severe strain, with only 59.3 per cent of health facilities fully functional, complete vaccination coverage at 63 per cent, and Yemen continuing to face a high burden of epidemic-prone diseases.

The 2026 Yemen Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan (HNRP) sets out a focused and prioritized response to deliver life-saving assistance and protection services.

To deliver this response, the humanitarian community aims to reach 12 million people in 2026, including 9.4 million people prioritized for targeted assistance based on severity. The 2026 HNRP requests US$2.16 billion to deliver assistance at scale, including US$1.6 billion to support prioritized life-saving interventions across sectors for the most vulnerable. As needs intensify, sustained and flexible funding will be critical to prevent further deterioration and support timely, prioritized assistance in the areas of greatest severity.

The humanitarian community in Yemen is advancing the Global Humanitarian Reset. The 2026 HNRP response strategy is guided by the principles of the Humanitarian Reset with the Humanitarian County Team (HCT) committed to a more people-centred, locally led and cost-effective approach.Humanitarian assistance saves lives. However, humanitarian action alone cannot reverse the drivers of Yemen’s crisis. Reducing long-term needs will require joint efforts of all actors to restore essential services, revive livelihoods and strengthen resilience to future shocks, reinforced by progress towards a political solution. Without sustained support, millions of people will remain at risk of deepening hunger, preventable illnesses and protection threats.