WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd June, 2020) The United Nations and Saudi Arabia are set to host a High-Level pledging conference to boost support toward Yemen's response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.
The event will be held virtually and will take place from 8:00 a.m. to 13:40 EST (13:00 to 18:40 GMT) on Tuesday.
Riyadh-based King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSrelief) noted that the event will be headed by Saudi Arabia under the directives of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Said, and HRH Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said earlier in May that the United Nations is very concerned at the rapid spread of the coronavirus disease across Yemen.
"There will be a pledging conference on the second of June; we very much hope donors will come prepared to pledge generously," Dujarric said.
Dujarric said that the current level of funding for humanitarian programs might force them to start shutting down in the next few weeks in Yemen. The country also experiences severe shortages of testing to diagnose COVID-19.
While Yemen's health care system, impacted by the protracted armed conflict, is going through collapse, the United Nations suspects that COVID-19 is widely spreading throughout local communities, Dujarric added.
"We keep talking that we are shocked and outraged in this context, but it is obviously shocking that in this particular environment, we have not yet been able to secure adequate funding for the COVID-19 response," he stressed.
Dujarric also said that in the meantime, it is critical for the authorities across Yemen to do the utmost to suppress the transmission of the virus and ensure that reporting of cases is done with a high level of transparency.
"This year's pledge is expected to be substantive and will cover emergency needs created by the COVID-19 pandemic," KSrelief states in a release. "Saudi Arabia's pledge will include more than 10 relief projects with 11 UN agencies. The most urgent sectors of needs will be included."
Last year, Saudi Arabia pledged $750 million and reached 11 million beneficiaries.
"Saudi Arabia has been the largest consistent donor to Yemen," KSrelief noted. "The total of its funding to date is USD 16.9 billion. Forty pledges for a total of USD 2.6 billion Dollars were promised by donors in 2019."
KSrelief stressed that Hosting this year's pledging event is "an extension of Saudi Arabia's global humanitarian and development contributions-to Yemen, in particular."
"By hosting this event, Saudi Arabia affirms its commitment to alleviating the suffering of the Yemeni people and to providing ongoing support to the country," the center stated. "The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia calls upon other donor countries to participate in the success of this important humanitarian pledging event to help the United Nations and the world provide essential, life-saving assistance to Yemen and its people over the next year."
His Highness Prince Faisal bin Farhan, Minister of Foreign Affairs, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, His Excellency Dr. Abdullah Al Rabeeah, Supervisor General of King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (Ksrelief) and Adviser to the Royal Court and UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock are scheduled to participate in the conference.
According to Johns Hopkins University, the number of COVID-19 cases in Yemen has so far reached 283 with 65 deaths. The United Nations, however, previously voiced its concern that the actual number of infections might be underreported.
