Keeping health care and hope alive in Southern Yemen. What is Caritas Poland doing there?

Yemen no longer makes daily headlines, but for the people who live there, the emergency has not faded. After more than a decade of war, 19.5 million Yemenis depend on humanitarian aid to survive, half of the country’s health facilities are damaged or only partially functioning, and global funding covers less than 60% of what is needed.

The roots of this crisis go back to 2014–2015, when Houthi rebel forces seized the capital, Sana’a, and ousted the internationally recognised government, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene militarily.

What began as a domestic power struggle became a regional proxy conflict, and more than a decade on, the country remains divided.

Caritas Poland has worked directly in southern Yemen since 2020 — one of a shrinking number of international organisations still present on the ground, currently running four health facilities in Aden in-house, with the support of the wider Caritas Confederation. Since then, its health programmes have reached close to one million people.

We spoke with Jakub Kharabshah, who has led the mission as Head of Mission since April 2024, about what it takes to keep hope — and healthcare — alive in one of the world’s most forgotten crises.

Jakub, when did you move to Yemen, and how have you seen the situation evolve since you first arrived?

I moved to Yemen in April 2024 to serve as Head of Mission for Caritas Poland.

Since my arrival, the humanitarian situation has unfortunately not improved. Several international organisations have reduced their presence or withdrawn altogether, leaving millions of vulnerable people with fewer sources of assistance. At the same time, the cost of living continues to rise: conflicts across the Middle East have disrupted supply chains and pushed up the price of imported goods, on which Yemen relies for food, fuel and medicines. Many families are surviving on less than USD 50 a month, and the gap between needs and available resources keeps growing.

Yemen is considered one of the neglected and forgotten crises. Why do you think that is the case?

The conflict is not new — Yemen has endured more than a decade of war since 2015 — and the country is geographically and culturally distant from much of Europe and North America. The world has also witnessed several major emergencies in recent years — Ukraine, Gaza, Lebanon, Iran and Israel — which draw most of the available attention and funding. As a result, Yemen’s crisis is gradually being overshadowed, despite millions of people still needing assistance.

Today, 17 million people are acutely food insecure and 4.5 million have been displaced. Caritas Poland has remained on the ground throughout, one of the few international actors still delivering healthcare in this gap.

What are the most urgent needs in the health sector, and how easily could they be addressed?

More than half of the country’s health infrastructure is damaged or out of service. Even operational facilities face severe shortages of medicines, supplies and qualified staff, and frequent electricity shortages undermine everything from diagnostics to surgery. Without organisations such as Caritas Poland, millions of Yemenis would have extremely limited access to healthcare — but with sustained investment, this is a system that can be rebuilt.

One answer to the electricity crisis lies in the sun. At the Swedish Hospital in Taizz, a 90 kW solar system with battery storage now keeps the ICU and incubators running and powers essential equipment. Within two weeks of installation, the hospital carried out 20 surgeries that would otherwise have been impossible; by 2024, patient numbers had risen to more than 375,000, up from 270,000 two years earlier.

What has been the impact of the overall aid cuts in 2025 on Yemen?

The impact has been severe, particularly for women and children. Funding shortages have forced many organisations to scale down or end operations entirely. For many Yemenis, humanitarian-supported clinics were the only accessible healthcare; when they close, people lose access to treatment, maternal care, vaccinations and emergency services, forcing many to delay or forgo care altogether — sometimes with life-or-death consequences.

What chronic illnesses do you see linked to poverty, malnutrition, war and a contaminated environment?

The link between poverty, malnutrition, conflict and disease is direct and visible. Diseases such as cholera, malaria and dengue fever, which are rarely a concern in Europe today, remain part of daily life here due to the collapse of basic infrastructure. Around 18 million people face food insecurity and 13 million lack reliable access to clean water, fuelling recurrent outbreaks of waterborne and vector-borne disease. Nearly 5 million people are internally displaced, often in overcrowded conditions with poor sanitation. The result is a mix of acute outbreaks and chronic consequences: malnutrition in children, recurrent diarrhoeal disease, untreated infections and maternal complications; most of which are entirely preventable with clean water, functioning clinics, vaccination and adequate nutrition.

What medicines are most needed?

Essential drugs for both acute and chronic conditions — antibiotics, paracetamol, and medication for hypertension, diabetes (including insulin) and cardiovascular disease. The challenge is not only the shortage, but the lack of a consistent supply, which makes long-term treatment very difficult.

Under its latest emergency appeal, Caritas Poland plans to deliver nine tons of essential medicines to its facilities in Aden, supporting around 80,000 people, while extending into Hadramout and Ad Dale’e to reach a catchment population of approximately 200,000.

How do you work with the local staff, given the cultural differences?

It was not the easiest process at the beginning, but it became much smoother over time. Having lived in Jordan for 19 years, I speak Arabic, which allowed for much faster integration and trust-building — though dialects vary significantly, and I did not understand many local expressions at first. By keeping communication clear, respectful and two-way, we built strong working relationships and effective cooperation within the team.

What is the impact on Yemen of the broader tensions in the region?

Yemen is heavily dependent on imports of food, medicine, equipment and fuel. Access to diesel is already very limited and prices are extremely high, a situation worsened by the Israel–Iran conflict, which has disrupted shipping routes and global energy markets — meaning even greater pressure on households and on humanitarian operations.

What gives you hope in your daily work?

What gives me hope is that what I do has a real, immediate impact on people’s lives. When I see mothers and children receiving free medical care in our clinics, and how grateful they are, that gives me strength to do even more each day. Hearing that some women pray for us because of the assistance they receive is deeply meaningful — it helps me forget the distance from home, even in a place affected by insecurity.

There are difficult days, of course: limited freedom of movement, and a curfew after 7 p.m., mean daily life is centred entirely around work. But at the end of the day, when I see reports of how many newborns were delivered safely in our clinics, it brings a deep sense of satisfaction — and reminds me why this work matters.

Why this matters now

Since 2020, Caritas’s health programmes in southern Yemen have reached 977,514 beneficiaries — more than half of them women, over 200,000 children, and 7,054 newborns delivered safely. Today, Caritas Poland runs four health facilities in Aden, and as Jakub puts it, even €20,000 makes a tangible difference. Every solar panel installed, every box of medicine delivered, and every safe birth is proof that with the continued solidarity of the Caritas Confederation — and of you — light can still reach even the darkest corners of Yemen.

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