European Commission: More than 14m Yemenis need urgent aid

The European Commission sounded the alarm on Wednesday that up to 14.5 million Yemenis are in need for urgent humanitarian aid.
The EC, in a statement, circulated here, said it had earmarked euro 33 million worth of aid for the Yemeni Government to secure food for those in need.
Securing food is a major challenge facing some 10.5 million Yemenis and number of children suffering from acute malnourishment jumped to 1.6 million this year, it warned.
The EC statement added that 2.2 million Yemeni children suffer from chronic malnutrition, which results in stunted growth and delayed mental development.
According to the World Bank, Yemen, with a 25 million population, is the poorest nation in the Middle East and North Africa, with poverty rate estimated at 42.8 percent of the whole population.
Malnutrition rate among children reached 59 percent in 2011.