Aden (South24 Center) 

More than one million women in Yemen could lose access to reproductive health services after the United States suspended funding and international donors reduced commitments to tackle the country’s humanitarian crisis, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) warned in a recent report.

The funding shortfall also threatens to deprive an additional 300,000 women and girls of gender-based violence prevention and response programs, --critical services in a country where domestic violence and child marriage rates are rising, particularly among displaced populations.

The cuts come at a critical time, with UNFPA’s 2025 appeal for Yemen receiving less than 25% of its $70 million target. This risks the suspension of essential programs across multiple governorates, including a joint UNFPA-UNICEF initiative to combat child marriage.

The program, currently operating 22 classrooms in five Yemeni provinces, serves 738 girls—most of whom are survivors of early marriage or were forced to drop out of school due to conflict, displacement, and poverty. UNFPA cautioned that continued funding gaps could force these classrooms to close, leaving hundreds of girls without education or protection and increasing their vulnerability to early marriage, teen pregnancy, and life-threatening health complications.

The warning coincides with surging child marriage rates in Yemen, where one in three girls is married off before age 18 -- a trend most acute among displaced families who have lost income and educational opportunities.

As ‘South24 Center’ previously reported, economic hardship remains the primary driver of early marriage, particularly in rural areas. The funding crisis now threatens to reverse years of fragile progress in safeguarding women’s health and rights.