“Yemen is a country wracked by chronic poverty and underdevelopment, and millions of Yemenis are struggling to cope,” said Emergency Relief Coordinator Valerie Amos.

“People need food, water, education and health care. But they also want to know that there is investment to secure their future. We urgently need more funding to help those in need.”

More than 10 million people in Yemen – almost half the country’s population – are either hungry or on the edge of hunger with very high rates of food insecurity. Child malnutrition rates are among the highest in the world with close to half of Yemen’s children under 5 years old – around 2 million children – suffering from stunting.

Following a visit to the country, Ms. Amos and the Executive Director of the World Food Programme (WFP), Ertharin Cousin, called on countries, particularly those in the Gulf region, to step up humanitarian efforts in Yemen.

This year, WFP aims to provide almost 5 million people in 16 governorates with food assistance and is working to build community resilience.

“WFP is providing life-saving food assistance to almost 5 million Yemenis to break the intergenerational cycle of hunger,” said Ms. Cousin. “We will continue this vital food assistance by improving food security and nutrition but at the same time helping build resilience of these communities. We are working to ensure families themselves are able to take care of their food needs through food for work, food for training and other income generating activities.

“We count on the support of our donors and the strong partnership with the Government of Yemen to help communities free themselves from the cycle of hunger.”

During their visit, Ms. Amos and Ms. Cousin met senior Government officials, to discuss humanitarian needs and the challenges facing the country. They also met non-governmental organizations, women leaders, humanitarian partners, and representatives of the donor community.

In addition, they travelled to the city of Hudeidah, where they saw first-hand efforts to combat malnutrition and food insecurity. They visited nutrition and health care clinics supported by WFP and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and saw the offloading of WFP food supplies at the Hudeidah Port. They also visited the Al Mazraq camp in Harad, where people displaced by the conflict in Sa’ada still live, and visited a centre where stranded migrants from the Horn of Africa receive assistance from the International Organization for Migration.

Yemen faces multiple humanitarian crises. Out of a population of 24 million, over half need some form of humanitarian aid. More than half of the population does not have access to clean water and proper sanitation, and one million children suffer from acute malnutrition.

“The needs are rising exponentially and we are broke,” UNICEF spokesperson Marixie Mercado told reporters in Geneva. “In concrete terms this means that by June we will stop delivering 3.5 million litres of water every day to Zaatari camp.”

Donors have so far contributed $12 million to UNICEF against an appeal of $57 million for its operation in Jordan this year.

UNICEF estimates that the number of Syrian refugees in Jordan will reach 1.2 million by the end of the year, and Ms. Mercado added that with the influx of new arrivals, needs are rapidly surpassing funding resources.

Without additional funds, UNICEF will not be able to open a third school it had been planning inside the camp, as it will not have the necessary resources to acquire textbooks and furniture, or cover the teachers’ salaries and the running costs of the school.

“This means the ministry of education will turn away Syrian refugee students seeking entry into Jordanian schools because we cannot provide support to any more than 30,000 Syrian school children already in Jordanian schools with UNICEF support,” Ms. Mercado said.

Lack of funding will also stop UNICEF’s provision of water, sanitation, immunization and nutrition support to two new camps slated to open in coming weeks.

Meanwhile, the Director of Operations for the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), John Ging, will begin a one-week visit to Syria and its neighbouring countries tomorrow to review the humanitarian response to the rapidly escalating crisis, which has now displaced more than 1.25 million Syrians.

Mr. Ging will be in Syria until Monday, and will then go to Lebanon, followed by Jordan and Turkey.

More than 70,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed and more than three million displaced since the uprising against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad began in March 2011. UNICEF estimates that out of the four million people in need, 50 per cent are children.

Heavy rains last month led to massive flooding in the southern part of the country, killing 105 people and displacing some 150,000. Hundreds of houses were destroyed and crops and infrastructure severely damaged.

In a news release, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said the Government and its partners have already allocated $10 million to cope with the emergency. However, given the scale of the disaster, more resources are required for those who lost everything in the floods.

The funds, $5.13 million in total, will be distributed from the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), which is managed by OCHA, to various UN agencies to provide basic needs and services such as shelter, food, medical aid, water, sanitation and hygiene, and logistical protection to those in need.

“While much has been done, much more is needed. These CERF funds will go a long way in ensuring that assistance is provided to those who need it most,” said the UN Resident Coordinator in Mozambique, Jennifer Topping.

The World Food Programme (WFP) will receive $2.3 million, and more than $1 million will be allocated to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), respectively. A further $820,000 will be given to a joint UNICEF/UN Population Fund (UNFPA)/World Health Organization (WHO) project.

The CERF allocation will form part of the larger recovery proposal, which seeks $30.6 million from the international community to help those affected by the floods for the next six months. Approximately $5 million in pledges have already been received and OCHA is calling on donors to support these efforts to ensure a quick early recovery and increased community resilience.

Launched in 2006, CERF enables the fast delivery of life-saving assistance to people affected by natural disasters and other crises worldwide. It is funded by voluntary contributions from Member States, non-governmental organizations, regional governments, the private sector and individual donors. Donors have so far pledged more than $383 million for 2013, bringing the total amount contributed to CERF since March 2006 to more than $3.2 billion.

The Decision has two components. For the first, €60 million will be allocated to the PEGASE mechanism, which supports the Palestinian National Development Plan by helping the PA to finance its budget deficit and implement its reform agenda, meet its obligations towards civil employees, pensioners and most vulnerable citizens, and maintain the functioning of the administration and the provision of essential public services to the population. This amount will contribute to the Palestinian Authority’s payments of salaries and pensions for the first three months of 2013.

The Second component allocates an initial amount of €40 million to UNWRA’s 2013 regular budget (General Fund) in order to support the education, health, relief and social services programmes which UNWRA is responsible for providing for Palestine refugees in West Bank, Gaza, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon.

High Representative/Vice/President Catherine Ashton said: “The European Union is again doing its utmost to underpin the ability of the PA and UNRWA to deliver essential services to the Palestinian people without interruption. We are committed to continuing our support while urging other donors to follow suit. This year we are also earmarking a specific allocation for the Jerash refugee camp in Jordan, which is home to some of the most vulnerable Palestinian refugees in the Middle East.”

EU Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood Policy Štefan Füle, announcing the adoption of the package, said: “The Palestinian Authority has particular problems in obtaining donor funds early in the year. The EU is aware of this and, as a reliable donor, has taken steps to alleviate the problem. These funds for both the PA and UNWRA for early 2013 are vital for ensuring that there is no interruption in the provision of the basic health and education services which the Palestinian people need”.

In addition to the two components financed from the 2013 budget, a further amount of €2 million is allocated from 2012 funds to rebuild shelters for around 100 of the poorest Palestinian refugee families in Jordan’s Jerash Refugee Camp.

“The Secretary-General hopes these actions will help to arrest the latest offensive while efforts continue to fully implement Security Council Resolution 2085 (2012) aimed at the full restoration of Mali’s constitutional order and territorial integrity,” according to a statement released by his spokesperson.

Northern Mali was occupied by radical Islamists after fighting broke out in January 2012 between Government forces and Tuareg rebels, after which the country underwent a military coup d’état, in March.

According to media reports, a French air operation began on Friday and continued over the weekend after the armed groups overran the town of Konna, which had been on the de facto dividing line between those areas under Government control and those already occupied by the rebels.

Mr. Ban stressed that the latest events underscore the urgency of implementing all aspects of resolution 2085, including support for Malian defence forces and the deployment of the African-led International Support Mission in Mali, or AFISMA, the Council authorized through that text, according to the statement.

Also urgent were the success of mediation efforts of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the development of a consensual roadmap for a political transition and provision of support, Mr. Ban said.

According to the statement, preparations are also continuing for the deployment soon of a UN multidisciplinary team to the capital, Bamako, to carry forward support requested for both the political and security process.

Mr. Ban spoke on Saturday with the President of Côte d’Ivoire and Chair of ECOWAS, Alassane Ouattara, who briefed him on the ECOWAS summit planned for 19 January in Abuja and the plans of several of its member States to deploy military forces, the spokesperson said.

The Secretary-General was briefed on the French operation yesterday by French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius.

Meanwhile, Mr. Ban’s Special Representative for West Africa, Said Djinnit, continues his consultations in the sub-region as part of efforts to speed up implementation of resolution 2085, the spokesman added.

Mr. Djinnit met yesterday in Abuja with the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Ambassador Kadré Desiré Ouédraogo, and with Foreign Minister Djibrill Bassolé of Burkina Faso. He is expected to travel to Bamako in the coming days, Mr. Ban’s spokesperson said.

Also yesterday afternoon, the delegation of France briefed the Security Council in a closed-door session on the military action conducted by the country after which its Permanent Representative told correspondents that Council members had expressed their support and understanding of the operation in the context of resolution 2085.

The renewed clashes in the north, as well as the proliferation of armed groups in the region, drought and political instability have uprooted hundreds of thousands of civilians in Mali. Over 412,000 people have been forced to flee the north, and an estimated five million people have been affected by the conflict.

The bulk of the appeal – $1 billion – is for the Syria Regional Response Plan, which will support refugees fleeing Syria to Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Turkey and Egypt. It is based on planning estimates that up to a million Syrian refugees will need help during the first half of next year.

More than $519 million will be needed to support an estimated four million people inside Syria who need urgent humanitarian assistance, including an estimated two million internally displaced persons (IDPs).

Together, the 2013 Syria Humanitarian Assistance Response Plan – which covers relief activities inside Syria – and the new Syria Regional Response Plan comprise the largest short-term humanitarian appeal ever, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). They have been revised several times over the course of this year.

Speaking at the launch of the appeal in Geneva, the Regional Humanitarian Coordinator for Syria, Radhouane Nouicer, said the conflict has become increasingly brutal and indiscriminate and is exacting a heavy toll on the Syrian population across the country.

“The violence in Syria is raging and there are nearly no more safe areas where people flee to and find safety, as most parts of the country have now become engulfed in violence, including the capital, Damascus,” he stated.

“We are especially focusing on life-saving interventions and aiming to help people who have become displaced, host families and communities, and the poor suffering from the multiple effects of the current events,” Mr. Nouicer added.

The number of people in need of assistance inside Syria has quadrupled from one million in March 2012 to four million in December. The main needs outlined in the Syria Humanitarian Assistance Response Plan include food assistance, shelter, water and sanitation, nutrition and emergency medical services, cash assistance, basic services, and non-food items, such as mattresses and bedding, kitchen and hygiene sets, and clothes.

Mr. Nouicer noted that it is “highly unusual” for such plans to be revised so often, and it is indicative of the rapid developments on the ground and the dramatically deteriorating humanitarian situation in Syria. “The magnitude of this humanitarian crisis is indisputable,” he said.

According to the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), there are currently 525,000 Syrians that have either registered as refugees in neighbouring countries or are being assisted – a seven-fold increase since May.

“This massive humanitarian crisis requires urgent support from governments, businesses and private individuals,” said UNHCR’s Regional Coordinator for Syrian Refugees, Panos Moumtzis. “Unless these funds come quickly, we will not be able to fully respond to the life-saving needs of civilians who flee Syria every hour of the day – many in a truly desperate condition.”

At least 20,000 people, mostly civilians, have been killed in Syria since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began in early 2011.

The conflict, now in its 22nd month, has “escalated dangerously,” the Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Jeffrey Feltman, reported to the Security Council, as it met today to discuss the situation in the Middle East.

“As we have repeatedly underlined, the military approach pursued by both sides comes at a devastating cost in terms of human lives and destruction, and breeds a serious risk of sectarian and communal strife, radicalization and terrorism. If nothing is done to change the current dynamic, and to move toward a political solution, the destruction of Syria, will be the likely outcome,” he stated.

He added that long-standing fears that the conflict in Syria would seriously threaten the stability and security of Syria’s neighbours have intensified.

The UN World Food Programme (WFP), the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and their partners are providing assistance in the Tillabery region in the country’s south-west, where more than 40 per cent of houses and huts have disappeared in the flash floods.

Addressing a media briefing in Geneva, a spokesperson for the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Jens Laerke, said that thousands of people have sought refuge in school buildings close to their flooded homes.

The effect of the floods has increased since last year, when Government authorities estimated that 485,000 people were affected at this time of the year. In addition to the displacement of thousands, the floods have also led to the deaths of 81 people.

At the same briefing, a WFP spokesperson said that food assistance was being offered to those fleeing the floods and support was being offered to other agencies to transport aid.

Last week, UNICEF and the World Health Organization (WHO) had warned that floods in Western Africa, including Niger, would worsen the current cholera emergency in the region as they create the conditions required for the disease to spread further and faster.

The disease – transmission of which is exacerbated by poor sanitation and hygiene practices – is spreading fast in western Niger, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, as well as along the Congo River, affecting people in the Republic of the Congo and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

“In Tripoli, north Lebanon, on Monday we opened a new registration facility at the Rachid Karame International Exhibition Centre. This will allow processing of up to 700 people per day,” a spokesperson for the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), Adrian Edwards, told reporters in Geneva.

Syria has been wracked by violence, with an estimated 17,000 people, mostly civilians, killed since the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad began some 17 months ago.

According to UNCHR, there are 157,577 registered refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Turkey. However, UNHCR was careful to note that its official figures do not reflect the entire refugee population as many refugees are still waiting or are reluctant to register.

There are currently some 20,000 registered refugees in northern Lebanon alone, and thousands more are waiting to be registered even as new people arrive. The opening of the new registration facility follows an information campaign in Lebanon to encourage people to register, as many Syrians have been reluctant to register, the spokesperson noted.

“While refugees are receiving some humanitarian assistance pending registration, registration is critical to receive medical care and to enrol children in Lebanese public schools, which resume next month after the summer break,” Edwards said.

Throughout the summer, UNHCR has been running remedial classes for children struggling with a different curriculum and language of instruction. Through its partners, the agency will cover the school fees of displaced Syrians so that they can continue their education in September, with the agency estimating that some 4,000 children will enter the school system in the new school year following an increase in registration.

UNHCR also warned that the security situation for refugees in the northern border areas of Lebanon is deteriorating as certain parts – such as the Wali Khalid area, where several hundred refugee families reside – is targeted by shelling from the Syrian side of the border two to three times per week.

“Despite this situation, many families prefer to stay in the unsafe border areas where they have found refuge with host families than move to a collective shelter,” Edwards said.

In addition, refugees are struggling to pay high rent and host families are being stretched as the number of refugees keeps increasing. Many families are now seeking shelter in schools in the north and the east, Mr. Edwards noted, as local communities are unable to host more people.

In the Bekaa valley area, some 94 families are now staying in schools, including 80 in schools that are expected to reopen for the new school term in September. In the north, 51 families are currently staying in operational schools.

“UNCHR is scaling up its efforts to find alternative shelter for these refugees,” Mr. Edwards said, adding that the agency is concerned over recent reports of refugees having trouble crossing borders safely due to multiple checkpoints.

UNHCR has reported a significant drop in the number of Syrians crossing into Jordan as people have reported being fired upon by artillery while travelling to the border. Mr. Edwards said UNHCR is working to improve conditions in the existing camps there by installing electricity and boosting medical facilities.

In Turkey, in the town of Karkamis, a new camp is being established and is expected to be open by the end of the month. Overall, UNHCR estimates that the number of refugees in the country has now reached 59,710, with 2,000 still staying in schools awaiting a placement in camps.

Meanwhile, some 25,906 Iraqis have returned to their home country as their houses in Syria were destroyed by shelling and gunfire. Those coming from Aleppo reported being forced out of their homes by armed forces.

In Syria, UNHCR stated that despite the worsening security situation, the agency has continued to distribute relief items such as jerry cans, mattresses and plastic sheets. Health teams continue to operate and psychological counselling is available over the phone so refugees can express concern about threats and ask for assistance.

The aid is expected to reach around 80,000 victims, and will especially target the most vulnerable, such as low caste groups and tribal and religious minorities.

Commissioner Kristalina Georgieva, responsible for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response stated: “The floods came at a particularly bad time just before the harvest. And the monsoon season is not yet at its peak. Crops have been destroyed and in many cases people have also lost their homes and livestock, which further threatens their very survival. With this gesture of European solidarity we will be helping the most vulnerable families in the worst-affected districts to survive this dreadful blow.”

EU funded relief efforts will target the most affected districts of Assam – Barpata, Golaghat, Jorhat and Sonitpur. The funds will be channelled through the Commission’s Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection (ECHO) department, which will work through its partners (international non-government organisations, UN agencies and the Red Cross family) to undertake cash-for-work programmes. These will provide the most vulnerable families with extra income to buy food, improve their diet and get them back on their feet. The money will also provide emergency flood-resistant shelter, safe drinking water, sanitation and mosquito nets to prevent the spread of water-borne diseases.