UN GENEVA PRESS BRIEFING

25 March 2025

Situation of children in Yemen after ten years of conflict and other maters on children

Peter Hawkins, Representative for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Yemen, connecting from Sana'a, spoke about the impact of the ten years of conflict on Yemen’s children. One in two children under the age of five were malnourished today, a statistics almost unparalleled anywhere in the world; of them 537,000 suffered from severe acute malnutrition, an agonizing, yet completely preventable condition. Malnutrition weakened the immune system and stunted children. At the same time, 1.4 million pregnant and lactating women were also malnourished. This catastrophe was not natural; it was man-made, said Mr. Hawkins. Even during the periods of reduced violence, the structural consequences of the conflict for children had remained severe. Almost half of the population relied on external assistance. Critical ports and roads were damaged and blockaded, making the delivery of humanitarian aid more difficult. Despite difficult operating environment, UNICEF and other UN agencies remained on the ground helping those in need. Some 3,200 health facilities were being supported, and UNICEF was heling treat some 600,000 malnourished children. For this to continue, sustained funding over time was needed, but UNICEF’s 2025 appeal was only 25 percent funded. Time was of essence here: for those 537,000 children with severe acute malnutrition, especially, every minute counted.

Mr. Hawkins stressed that full funding was necessary; UNICEF needed an additional USD 157 million for its response in 2025. UNICEF needed sustained investment in fighting all forms of malnutrition and the diseases, lack of education and other forms of suffering children in Yemen were forced to endure. Protecting humanitarian access was equally essential; all parties to the conflict in Yemen had to allow unimpeded delivery of aid and allow humanitarians to do what they did best: save lives. UNICEF called for the release of detained UN staff and other humanitarian workers, and, importantly, for the conflict to cease. Yemen’s children could not wait another decade. They needed peace; they needed justice, but above all, they needed the world community to act now.

Answering questions from the media on recent US bombings of Yemen, Mr. Hawkins explained that the latest airstrikes had been very targeted, but eight children had been killed in the strikes. The strikes had an impact on the free, safe movement of humanitarian deliveries. Mr. Hawkins said that the airstrikes had been going on for over a year, and those in recent months had diminished the capacity of the Hodeida port by about 50 percent. The airport, which had also been attacked, was still functioning.

Also answering questions, Mr Hawkins said that the shock of the disruption of food distribution in 2024 had had severe effects on the population, making the people even more fragile and vulnerable. Without well-funded operations and uninterrupted access, thousands were set to die, said Mr. Hawkins. He said that airstrikes on Yemen diminished the existing infrastructure and installed fear among the local population. It was hoped that all protagonists in the conflict would acknowledge the plight of the civilian population and pursue peace instead. On another question, Mr. Hawkins reminded that in 2024 there had been a pause on general food distribution, but 2.1 million people had already received food in 2025, thanks to the World Food Programme.

On another question, James Elder, also for UNICEF, said that UNICEF was still trying to ascertain how much damage had been done to children vaccination efforts globally because of aid cuts. UNICEF had been very vocal about those who would pay the price of the aid cuts – the vulnerable children around the world. Mr. Elder reminded that UNICEF was the biggest global supplier of immunizations, and an unprecedented progress had been made in this regard in recent decades. UNICEF remained deeply concerned about the number of children separated from their families in Ukraine; all parties had to focus on finding solutions with the best interest of children in mind, said Mr. Elder in a response to another question.

Humanitarian situation of women and girls along the Sudan-Chad border

Francis James, Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Chad, explained that Chad was a country surrounded by a lot of instability, and affected by refugee crises. There were currently 769,000, refugees and displaced persons in eastern Chad, across 18 refugee camps and installations. Some 750,000 displaced people were located along western border, fleeing insecurity from Boko Haram, Islamic State and other groups, while in the south there were about 200,000 returnees and refugees from the Central African Republic. But there was hope, stressed Mr. James, and a new government led by a dynamic young president was now in place. The transition period was over, and the country was now fully following a development path. Mr. James said that a woman’s support centre was to be built in Adre, a small town along the border with Sudan. That centre would address the concerns of refugees and returnees and also the locally displaced; it would offer a platform for women and girls to develop skills, work on social cohesion, interact with local, communities and offer opportunities for vocational training and to build a better life or women and girls. Broadly speaking, investments had to be made in supporting women and girls, and in development overall, which would pay off eventually.

Decreasing UN presence in Gaza

Responding to a question on the Secretary-General’s Spokesman’s announcement that the UN would downsize its presence in Gaza, Alessandra Vellucci, for the United Nations Information Service (UNIS), stressed that the United Nations was to remain in Gaza, even if the number of international staff members would decrease by one third. Humanitarians and civilians had to be spared.

Margaret Harris, for the World Health Organization (WHO), added that the WHO team would remain operational, but bringing in aid was of critical importance, she emphasized.

James Elder, for the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), emphasized, once again, the need for an immediate ceasefire and unobstructed access of humanitarian aid.

Announcements

Claudia Marquina, for the United Nations Institute on Disarmament Research (UNIDIR), informed that UNIDIR would host the Global Conference on AI, Security, and Ethics at the Palais des Nations on 27-28 March. This event would part of our Roundtable for AI, Security, and Ethics, a multistakeholder platform dedicated to fostering dialogue on AI governance in security and defense. Ms. Marquina said that, currently, there were no universal rules governing military AI, and discussions remained fragmented. The Global Conference would therefore provide a unique opportunity to bring together experts from diplomacy, defense, industry, and academia to build consensus and advance responsible AI governance. It would explore critical questions, including how AI could be used responsibly in security and defense; what accountability frameworks were needed to govern its use; and how international cooperation could keep pace with technological advancements. The conference, which would present insights from over 50 global experts selected from a diverse call for contributions, could be attended in person of watched via livestream. More information is available here.

Daniel Gisnianmung, for Giga, explained that Giga, established in 2019, was a partnership between UNICEF and the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) that had mapped over 2.13 million schools, connected 24,000 schools, and reached 11 million students. Yet nearly 1.3 billion children lacked internet access at home. To advocate for universal internet connectivity as a human right, Giga was launching a photo contest and inviting youth, students, and professional photographers globally to submit visual stories on topics such as the impact of internet connectivity on education, on healthcare, in bridging the digital divide, accelerating participation of women and girls, and in emergency situations. The contest, on the theme of “The Joy of Connection”, would be launched on 1 April with an in-person event in Geneva at the Olivier Varenne gallery from 6 pm. The timeline for submitting photographs would be from 1 to 30 April; the submissions would be judged by a professional jury on 6-7 May. Finally, on 12 June, in collaboration with the City of Geneva, there would be an outdoor exhibition and awards ceremony at Parc Des Bastions.

On a question related to the impact of funding cuts, Alessandra Vellucci, for the United Nations Information Service (UNIS), said that several agencies, including UNAIDS, UNHCR and UNICEF, had already spoken to the press on the issue of funding cuts. UN Office at Geneva, for its part, was also taking certain saving measures, and more information would be provided as needed. James Elder, for UNICEF, reiterated that there was still no definite clarity on what the announced and potential cuts could mean in practice, but in the case of UNICEF, vulnerable children would pay the biggest price.

Ms. Vellucci informed that the UN Special Envoy for Syria, Geir O. Pedersen, would brief the Security Council at 3 pm Geneva time. His remarks would be distributed after the briefing.

The Human Rights Council was continuing with the reports of the Universal Periodic Review today. On the agenda were the outcome reports of Dominica, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Brunei Darussalam, Costa Rica, Equatorial Guinea, and Ethiopia.

The Human Rights Committee would close on 28 March its 143^rd session and issue its concluding observations on the reports of the five countries reviewed: Montenegro, Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, Mongolia, and Albania.

The Committee on Enforced Disappearances was concluding this morning the review of the report of Malta.

The Conference of the Parties to the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions would be meeting in Geneva from 28 April to 9 May. There would be three online briefings ahead of the COP: 27 March at 3 pm in English; 28 March at 4 pm in Spanish; and 1 April at 4 pm in French. More information is available here.

Finally, Ms. Vellucci announced an event on 26 March to mark the 50^th anniversary of the Biological Weapons Convention. The event would take place in Room XXI from 3:15 to 6 pm.

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