We Try to Help as Many as We Can’: Hunger Relief in Yemen

30 million people live with food insecurity in Yemen. As 2022 winds down, you may be looking to make one last charitable donation that will support a worthy cause. Here at Embrace Relief, we’re spotlighting our Breaking Bread With Yemen program, which has provided bread to more than 350,000 people in conflict-stricken Yemen over the past nine months. Donating to this program is an amazing way to save lives and create hope during this giving season. Read on to hear about life on the ground in Yemen from one of our partners, and how great the need truly is:

Cold weather is coming to Sana’a, the mountainous capital city of Yemen. Nestled in the Yemeni highlands, Sana’a gets much chillier during the winter months than the more temperate coastal areas in the south and west, or the hot desert in the east.

Many people in the capital are out of work as a result of the economic collapse caused by Yemen’s ongoing civil conflict. Many others are among the four million Yemenis – one-seventh of the population – who have been displaced from their homes during the crisis. Winter will be an especially challenging time for those who don’t have the money to afford homes and other basic necessities of life.

“I have met a lot of poor Yemeni people,” says Akram Al-Khaishani, an Embrace Relief partner living and working in Sana’a. “Many are displaced because of the war, they move from one governorate to another. Others have lost their job, their income, they’re living in shelters or tents. And they are waiting, asking for help, for clothes and medical help. But for most of the Yemeni people, they’re asking for bread. Something to protect themselves from hunger.”

Nearly two-thirds of Yemen’s population of 30 million is food insecure, and with the government unable to provide assistance, outside organizations like Embrace Relief are stepping in to help out and save lives.

Embrace Relief’s Breaking Bread With Yemen food distribution began in February 2022, and has now been operating for more than nine months. At the time of writing, Embrace Relief and our partner organizations have provided bread to more than 350,000 Yemenis through this program.

That number includes tens of thousands of mothers and fathers who have one less worry when it comes to providing for their families. It also includes tens of thousands more children who can attend school and live their lives on a full stomach. But more than anything else, that number represents 350,000 lives saved in a time of deep crisis. And it’s all thanks to the generosity of our donors.

“We try to help as many people as we can,” Akram says. “You cannot describe it, when you see a little girl and boy in the morning coming to the bakery, and they are so happy. So many children go to school without breakfast. They get their bread, most children go to school without breakfast. But now they can get their bread in the morning and focus on their studies.”

Help the people of Yemen with an End-of-Year Gift!

As long as the need exists in Yemen, Embrace Relief will be there. And that’s why we’ve made food distribution in Yemen our End-of-Year 2022 highlighted giving program!

This is the time of year when we all look to help those who are struggling. In Yemen, home to the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, the need has never been greater. With millions displaced from their homes, out of work, and lacking income, the support of outside organizations like Embrace Relief is vital to help the people of Yemen survive and rebuild.

“Please, look to the Yemeni people as if they’re your brothers and sisters,” says Akram. “Everything is closed in front of them. But when I meet people [at our bread distribution], they always wish paradise for those who are giving their support to them. They are happy because you are beside us in this difficult situation.”

Donating to our Breaking Bread With Yemen program, at any amount, can be a life-changing act for so many in Yemen:

  • $25 will feed an entire family for two weeks
  • $50 will feed an entire family for one month
  • $600 will feed an entire family for one year

Every one-time donation is greatly appreciated, but we also offer the opportunity to show your support in an even greater way through recurring monthly donations. Either way, you can be assured that your gift will directly put food in the hands of people in the greatest need.

So donate today and make the people of Yemen the recipients of your 2022 year-end gift! Every contribution you make will give hope to people who are living through the toughest times imaginable.