UN Reports 39,000 Child Deaths in Yemen in One Year Due to Vaccine-Preventable Diseases
UN Reports 39,000 Child Deaths in Yemen in One Year Due to Vaccine-Preventable Diseases
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The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has reported that over 39,000 children in Yemen died last year from diseases preventable by routine vaccinations, equating to one child death every 13.5 minutes.
In an official report published on its website, UNICEF highlighted Yemen’s unprecedented health crisis, noting that approximately 242,000 children missed their first dose of routine vaccines, increasing the risk of infectious disease outbreaks.
The organization also revealed an outbreak of type 2 poliovirus in Yemen, which has caused paralysis in numerous children. In response, a large-scale vaccination campaign targeted more than 1.4 million children under five across 12 Yemeni provinces. The campaign was carried out in coordination with Yemen’s Ministry of Health, the World Health Organization (WHO), and the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.
UNICEF confirmed that since 2021, Yemen has recorded 282 confirmed poliovirus cases. The agency warned that the emergence of new cases demands urgent action to save lives and prevent a worsening health disaster.
Previously, WHO cautioned that Yemen’s declining vaccination coverage is exacerbated by ongoing displacement, deteriorating living conditions, economic collapse, and the breakdown of the healthcare system alongside funding shortages.
In January, the United Nations launched an appeal to donors seeking $2.47 billion to support Yemen’s 2025 humanitarian response plan, aiming to provide urgent aid to nearly 19.5 million people affected by the ongoing conflict. Now in its tenth year, Yemen’s war continues to fuel one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, according to UN assessments.
