How funding cuts endanger children's health in Yemen

Pressure builds on remaining hospitals

Yemen’s health care system has long faced challenges, and across the country, humanitarian organizations that once supported primary health centers and referral facilities are scaling back or suspending services due to funding shortfalls and operational constraints. In parts of Hajjah and Al Hudaydah governorates, cuts have already forced some providers to halt activities or reduce services, leaving facilities understaffed and short of essential supplies.

According to the United Nations, as of March 2026, 40 percent of health facilities in Yemen are either only partially functioning or completely out of service, significantly restricting access to essential maternal and pediatric care.

For families in Abs and Al Qanawis, the impact has been immediate. In Abs, which has a population of over 1 million people, patients frequently arrive from areas with little access to basic care in advanced stages of illness. In Al Qanawis, even routine services remain out of reach for many who cannot afford or access alternatives.

Amid a shrinking humanitarian response, the burden does not disappear — it shifts. Hospitals supported by MSF are facing the fallout.

“Our teams are seeing a pattern of newborns and pediatric patients arriving at our facilities in advanced stages of illness,” said Iris Gonzales, a pediatrician with MSF’s Abs project. “As funding for health care shrinks, access to early diagnosis and treatment becomes more limited, meaning many of these conditions could have been detected and treated before becoming severe.” 

Long distances and transportation costs impede access

For many families, reaching care now requires hours of travel, as nearby health facilities have closed or are no longer fully functional. Delays often mean that conditions that could have been treated earlier become more critical by the time patients arrive.

The financial cost of seeking treatment has also increased. Families often need to pay for long-distance transport, fuel, or multiple connections to reach the nearest functioning facility. For some households, these expenses come in addition to other indirect costs: Family members or caregivers may have to lose a day’s income to accompany a patient, or arrange emergency transport at higher rates.

“To come to the hospital is not an easy thing,” says Jumaa, a mother and caretaker. “Let alone the expensive transportation cost which we cannot afford most of the time. The clinic nearby closed a while ago, and the remaining ones do offer services but they are too expensive for us.”

Disease outbreaks spread more easily, putting children at risk

In Yemen, shrinking humanitarian funding and the withdrawal of humanitarian actors has not only reduced access to routine health care, but it’s also weakening the country’s ability to prevent and control infectious disease outbreaks. This creates a dangerous environment where illnesses that are otherwise preventable or manageable can spread rapidly and widely. Children are disproportionately affected, as their developing immune systems make them more vulnerable to infection and severe outcomes. 

“When health care budgets are cut, one of the first areas to be affected is disease prevention,” said Abdul Aziz, MSF medical coordinator for Yemen. “Vaccination campaigns slow down or stop, surveillance systems become less effective, and community health outreach is reduced. As a result, diseases like acute watery diarrhea and measles can circulate with far less resistance.”

Acute watery diarrhea has been a recurring crisis in Yemen, fueled by contaminated water and damaged sanitation infrastructure. Without sufficient funding, efforts to prevent new infections become more difficult, including maintaining treatment capacity and ensuring adequate supplies such as oral rehydration salts and intravenous fluids. At the same time, reduced investment in water and sanitation programs further undermines efforts to control the spread of disease.

Funding cuts do not just reduce health care services — they directly increase the risk of preventable diseases escalating into widespread public health emergencies.

Supporting a health system under growing pressure

As Yemen’s already overstretched health system is further strained by funding cuts, MSF teams are supporting medical care and emergency responses to outbreaks such as acute watery diarrhea and measles. Our teams also provide free emergency treatment, inpatient care, and referrals for the most vulnerable children. 

In 2025, MSF teams at Abs General Hospital admitted more than 4,300 pediatric cases — a 20-percent increase from 2024, which saw 3,526 cases. As admissions increase, so does the number of critical cases, as children arrive later and in more severe condition. 

"We are seeing the consequences of funding cuts in real time,” said Denis Oyori, MSF head of mission in Yemen. “When frontline clinics close, hospitals like ours become the last option. Restoring support to primary health care is essential to prevent avoidable deaths among children.”

In both Abs General Hospital and Al Qanawis Mother and Child Hospital, there have been 5,138 neonatal admissions — including cases of respiratory tract infections, sepsis, and measles — and 3,927 malnutrition cases.

Sustaining funds for the health of babies and children

Sustained support from humanitarian organizations is essential to keep lifesaving child health care services operating in Yemen. Without predictable and continuous funding, hospitals and treatment centers struggle to maintain staffing, medical supplies, and outreach services that are critical for early diagnosis and treatment. This is particularly important for conditions such as malnutrition, infections, and neonatal complications, where delays in care can quickly become life-threatening.

MSF calls on international donors and humanitarian actors to restore and sustain funding for essential child health services in Yemen, and ensure that care remains accessible for communities. Strengthening and maintaining this support helps reduce preventable deaths by allowing children to receive timely treatment before conditions become critical.