Excellencies,

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen,

I would first like to thank the United Kingdom for convening this important meeting of the international community as we discuss the crisis in Yemen now in its sixth month. It remains critical that those of us present on the ground take advantage of this opportunity to fulfil our obligations to the Yemeni and other affected people, and to work together in support of an immediate and longer term solution.

IOM remains focused on the migration and humanitarian aspects of this crisis.  Civilians continue to bear the brunt of the on-going violence in Yemen. 21.1 million people -- or four out of five inhabitants – need humanitarian assistance inside the country. Latest reports from the Task Force on Population Movement, which IOM co-leads with UNHCR indicate that over 1.4 million people have so far been internally displaced, while close to a million migrants are currently living in precarious conditions in camps, receptions centers or poverty stricken urban areas across Yemen, unable to flee to safety.

IOM currently has 12 international staff in Sana’a and some 400 local staff inside the country who provide daily life-saving assistance to IDPs and host communities in urgent need of WASH and health services, NFI and shelter interventions. Over the past five months, IOM has been able, with great difficulty, to evacuate over 4,000 migrants of over 50 nationalities through a series of humanitarian flights from Sana’a and boat evacuations from Al Hudaydah.

The regional dimension of this crisis should be acknowledged. Since the escalation of the conflict, nearly 60,000 people have crossed the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea and arrived in Djibouti, Ethiopia, Somalia and Sudan, sometimes through unsafe vessels to undertake the perilous sea journey.

IOM assisted nearly half of this caseload with post-arrival assistance in Djibouti, Somalia, Ethiopia and Sudan through the provision of relief items and shelter, water & sanitation, food, health, transportation, reinsertion assistance and the facilitation of documentation. In support to governments in the region, IOM, UNHCR and NGO partners have recently released a Regional Refugee and Migrant Response Plan which aims to support receiving countries with the expected continuous influx of refugees and migrants.  Receiving countries should be praised for the assistance they have extended so far, and should be further supported by the international community to continue to do so.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Amidst all the facts and figures presented and the political processes at work, let us not forget the affected populations caught in this awful conflict. And let us not forget those aid workers on the ground in Yemen, providing humanitarian assistance in these trying times. It is as important now as ever to properly fund, equip, and protect our colleagues on the ground, and to focus our efforts on alleviating the suffering of those caught in the crossfire through no fault of their own.