Yemen’s continuing conflict has had devastating consequences on the country’s severely underfunded, overstretched, and damaged healthcare system, according to a recent report by ‘ACAPS’.
ACAPS, which an independent analytical voice helping humanitarian workers, influencers, fundraisers, and donors make better-informed decisions and respond more effectively to disasters found that the conflict in Yemen has disrupted healthcare services, causing limited access, with women bearing a disproportionate share of the burden.
ACAPS report added that across Yemen, healthcare needs are rising, primarily as a result of difficulties accessing medical services and medications, especially among women and girls of childbearing age, who face a plethora of barriers impeding their access to timely sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services.
The report found also that Maternal mortality rates in Yemen remain alarmingly high, at 43.3 per 1,000 lives births in 2021, with a woman dying in childbirth every two hours, predominantly from entirely preventable causes.
The report employs a mixed method methodology, integrating and building on existing data on women and girls’ access to SRH services in Yemen and triangulating with primary data from key informant interviews (KIIs).
Seven KIIs were conducted with humanitarian responders, health practitioners, and key responders providing and coordinating SRH services in Yemen.
The report noted that it covered services across Yemen, including in areas controlled by the Internationally Recognized Government of Yemen (IRG) and the Houthi rebels.