In November 2023, Yemen witnessed a drastic surge in cholera cases, with reported instances rising by 37% compared to previous months and fatalities increasing by 27%. This alarming trend underscores the urgency of Yemen's ongoing humanitarian crisis, exacerbated by over a decade of relentless conflict, economic collapse, and a deteriorating health infrastructure.

Yemen has been grappling with a cholera epidemic that began in 2017 and has continued to rear its head intermittently, with the latest outbreak emerging in March 2024. Arturo Pesigan, the World Health Organization (WHO) Representative in Yemen, highlighted the dire situation, stating, “The outbreak of waterborne diseases like cholera and acute watery diarrhoea imposes an additional burden on an already stressed health system facing multiple disease outbreaks.”

The country struggles with severe obstacles such as inadequate access to clean drinking water, poor sanitation facilities, and limited treatment options, which are significantly exacerbating the cholera crisis. The WHO has reported that Yemen is facing a critical funding shortfall of $20 million for cholera response efforts between October 2024 and March 2025. Due to these funding shortages, the closure of 47 diarrhoea treatment centres and 234 oral rehydration centres was observed between March and November, and that number could extend to an additional 17 DTCs and 39 ORCs by the year's end, threatening to shutter as much as 84% of DTCs and 62% of ORCs in the country.

Immediate financial support is imperative, as health officials warn that Yemen could plunge back into a devastating scenario reminiscent of the 2017-2020 cholera outbreak, which overwhelmed the already fragile healthcare system. In response to the current situation, the WHO has collaborated closely with Yemeni authorities and humanitarian partners to manage the outbreak. Their initiatives include deploying over 25,000 rapid response teams to investigate alerts and enforce control measures. The WHO has also supplied essential laboratory reagents to 12 central health laboratories for confirming infections and has distributed crucial medicines and hygiene materials to various health facilities.

The cholera crisis is a mere reflection of a broader and grimmer humanitarian disaster. Nearly half of Yemen's population, approximately 18.2 million people, are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance, with 11.2 million requiring immediate aid. Food insecurity is rampant, affecting roughly 17.6 million individuals, and nearly 50% of all children under the age of five are reported to suffer from moderate to severe stunting due to malnutrition.

The world must not look away from Yemen's plight. As international agencies call for more contributions, an urgent response is needed to prevent further loss of life and an escalation of human suffering in one of the most crisis-stricken nations on the planet.