he Deputy Governor of Marib, Dr. Abdur-Rahman Muftah, met with Ibrahim al-Hadad, the Head of Communication and Information Systems at the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Yemen, on Tuesday, July 23, 2024. The meeting focused on coordinating the integration of the local humanitarian response plan, launched by the Marib authorities earlier this month, with the UN's 2025 humanitarian response plan.

The meeting, which was attended by the Director of the OCHA office in Marib, Saeed Musa; the Director General of Administrative Research and Training at the Governorate's Office, Jamal al-Jaafari; and the Deputy Director of the Executive Unit, Dr. Khaled al-Shajhani, also reviewed the dire humanitarian situation in the governorate. The situation is worsening due to a significant decline in humanitarian interventions by organizations, the effects of the economic crisis, the ongoing collapse of the national currency, and the impacts of climate change, natural disasters, ongoing conflict, and displacement into the governorate.

Deputy Governor Muftah commended OCHA's humanitarian role in Marib and its partnership with local authorities. He expressed his hope for a more significant and expanded role for the organization in the current situation. He emphasized that the UN has a moral and legal responsibility to support local authorities in addressing the humanitarian crisis, which is seeing a daily increase in families unable to afford food, pushing them into food insecurity and facing the threat of famine. This is particularly concerning given the World Food Program's delay in distributing food aid to beneficiaries for several months.

The UN official praised the humanitarian response plan developed by the local authorities, commending their efforts and the plan's inclusion of prioritized needs in both emergency and sustainable aspects. He confirmed that his organization will strive to integrate the plan into Yemen's overall humanitarian response plan for next year, prioritizing its key elements. He also acknowledged the challenges facing international humanitarian organizations in Yemen, particularly the significant decline in humanitarian funding from donors amidst the increasing conflicts in the world and the Middle East.