Project Summary:

Award Number: AID-FFP-G-16-00070 Start Date: July 17, 2016

End Date: September 30, 2018 Report Date: January 31, 2018 Total Award: $ 17,667,261

Yemen Emergency Food Assistance (YEFA)

AID-FFP-G-16-00070 Quarterly Report: October – December 2017

Quarterly Report: October – December 2017 The Emergency Food Assistance (YEFA) program is a food assistance intervention jointly implemented by Mercy Corps, CARE and ACTED to serve the urgent food needs of conflict-affected households in Yemen, foster long-term resilience through the creation of productive communal assets, and contribute to malnutrition reduction through hygiene and nutrition promotion. Geographically, the program is implemented in Sana’a, Al Mahwit, Taiz, Lahj and Al Dhale’e . The YEFA program interventions are currently being implemented in ten districts in the five governorates listed. Mercy Corps expects to reach at least 7,510 households by the end of the program.

YEFA Program Overview: The overall goal of the project is “to reduce food insecurity and promote recovery and resilience of vulnerable displaced and conflict-affected households in Yemen.” The program has three mutually reinforcing objectives that focus on meeting the basic food needs of conflict-affected households through food vouchers, improving the knowledge of proper hygiene and nutrition practices for households targeted through YEFA interventions, and improving targeted communities’ ability to mitigate shocks through the construction and rehabilitation of communal productive assets.

The program utilizes complementary approaches to ensure the realization of its objectives. Through unconditional and conditional food transfers, the program meets the basic food needs of the targeted households. Nutrition and hygiene promotion is conducted through a network of community health volunteers appropriately trained by Mercy Corps and partners’ staff as well as being equipped with relevant information, education and communication materials. Community projects for risk mitigation are constructed or rehabilitated through the food for assets (FFA) approach. 1

Quarterly Situation Overview: The overall conflict-induced humanitarian situation in Yemen has deteriorated during the reporting period, due to the blockade of key sea and air ports, coupled with the intensification of ground fighting and airstrikes. According to the 2018 HNO, 22.2 million people in Yemen are estimated to be in need of humanitarian assistance, and 11.3 million of these are in acute need.

The prolonged conflict-driven crisis in Yemen is currently described as the worst humanitarian disaster and largest emergency in the world. Escalation in fighting, unrest experienced with the recent killing of the former President , and intensified airstrikes coupled with the blockade have pushed millions of Yemenis into destitution. Over half of the population are deprived of basic necessities and are experiencing extreme hunger, and at least eight million people are at risk of . While most of the health facilities and basic services have almost collapsed, over a million people are affected by the outbreak, one of the worst in the world, and nearly 500 people are infected by a diphtheria outbreak which is spreading rapidly – all leading the country into complex catastrophic situation.

One of the manifestations of the devastating impact of the war on Yemen’s economy is the rapid depreciation of the Yemeni Riyal (YER), which is further aggravating the complex humanitarian crisis in the country. The national average exchange rate in December 2017 stood at 441 YER/USD, which is more than double from the pre-crisis rate (215 YER/USD) in 2015. Compared to the rates of the last quarter, July- September, the exchange rate in December rose by about 7% and 13%, respectively. The December exchange rates in five of the governorates that YEFA is being implemented – Ad Dhale’e, Al Mahwit, Lahj, Sana’a, and Taiz – exceeded the national average.

The conflict significantly escalated by the end of the reporting period. In the first week of November, the Saudi-led Coalition (SLC) closed all air and sea ports in Yemen, effectively sealing off the country and imposing a de-facto blockade which prevented the movement of UN and NGO staff, and significantly disrupted the provision of much needed humanitarian and commercial supplies to the country. The blockade was officially condemned by UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, the UN Secretary General, and by the NGO community, and was described in a joint INGO-UN statement as ‘a measure which may amount to collective punishment of millions of Yemeni people’. In early December, the situation dramatically worsened following the outbreak of armed clashes in Sana’a City as tensions between the Houthis and their former General People’s Congress (GPC) partners boiled over into intensive, and decisive, street fighting. Despite receiving air support from the Saudi-led coalition, GPC forces were steadily overrun by Houthi forces ending with the death of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh and the capital falling firmly under Houthi control.

The market has witnessed a widespread increase in prices of basic commodities following the start of the blockade in early November. During this reporting period, the consortium conducted a Rapid Price Monitoring Assessment in all the governorates in which this reporting action is being implemented. The results showed that all items remain relatively available, albeit at higher prices. According to the WFP Yemen Market Watch Report (covering October and the first half of November 2017), the average cost of the November minimum food basket in Al Dhale’e increased by 6.5% from the October basket. Fuel and water prices are also increasing. It is worth noting that Aden and Al Hodeida are the main sources of most of the commodities for markets in the five governorates, as many traders, retailers, and wholesalers reported during the market assessment exercises. The implementing partners, Mercy Corps, ACTED and CARE, continue to monitor the market in the target areas, and are waiting for the situation to stabilize before moving forward with any procurement of food baskets. Retail prices of basic food items and fuel significantly further increased in December 2017 as a result of the scarcity of commodities in local markets caused by the continued blockade and intensification of conflicts and airstrikes. Fuel prices in December 2017 were higher when compared to the pre-crisis period, while food prices increased between 26% and 85%. Governorates currently under active conflicts and escalated airstrikes, such as Taiz and Sana’a City, experienced the highest prices of basic commodities. The average cost of the monthly minimum food basket in December increased by 4% and 12% from November and October respectively, 47% higher than in the pre-crisis period. 2

Access in Al Dhale’e and Lahj governorates was largely stable during the reporting period. ACTED and CARE’s project teams did not face any issues pertaining to security despite the overall worsening of the security context in Yemen. However, in Sana’a City, Al Mahwit, and Taiz, due to the on-going instability of the security situation across the governorates, the offices and operations of Mercy Corps in all these three governorates were temporally closed and movements halted for two weeks during November and December because of the active fighting that resulted in the death of the former president, Saleh.

PROGRESS AGAINST PERFORMANCE BENCHMARKS AND INDICATORS

Activities initiated during this reporting period were mainly focused on project start-up, including signing of the project agreement with MOPIC1, recruitment of staff, preparation of a detailed implementation plan, and preparation of a detailed spending and procurement plan. Community sensitization workshops were conducted in the targeted villages in all the governorates to orientate community members about the activities of the project. The project has ensured active participation of community members, community leaders, and local authorities to identify the potential community assets for rehabilitation and construction in the targeted areas. The project has also conducted a Rapid Market Assessment, a baseline survey, and a pre-KAP survey in the targeted villages of the different districts.

During the reporting period, ACTED and Mercy Corps finalized the last cycle of food security support to 4,800 beneficiaries’ households targeted during the first phase of the project (YEFA I), and launched the preliminary activities for the second phase of the project (YEFA II). The last distribution of food vouchers and hygiene promotion sessions to the 2,600 households targeted under YEFA I was completed in October. In addition, Mercy Corps completed rehabilitation of 10 community projects that had been delayed because of accessibility issues and permits for field visit movement which were not readily provided by the Ministry of Interior during the previous reporting period.

Result 1.1: 7,582 beneficiary households have access to basic food items through the provision of food vouchers

Activity 1.1: Create awareness on program activities; particularly criteria for food commodity voucher Under YEFA II, ACTED, CARE and Mercy Corps conducted several meetings with local authorities at the governorate and district level during the reporting period to raise awareness about the programs and identify the most vulnerable districts to be targeted under the second phase of the project. During this reporting period, CARE’s team conducted 11 community sensitization meetings in the targeted villages of both districts (five meetings in Al-Madaribah district and six meetings in Al-Maqatirah district) with the purpose of orienting community members on the objective and activities of the project, establishing community committees and criteria for beneficiary selection. It was clearly stated to the participants that the program is conditional and each community should be involved in the construction and rehabilitation of key infrastructure assets. However, extremely vulnerable households who do not have an able-bodied member available to participate in the community asset activities would be given unconditional vouchers.

In November, ACTED met with the governor of Al Dhale’e to discuss the overall objectives of the project, as well as to receive feedback and recommendations on target sites, previous experiences, and any outstanding concerns. Following this, ACTED met with the head of MOPIC of Al Dhale’e governorate in late November. During the meetings, authorities expressed concerns with the continued targeting of the same

1 MOPIC refers to Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation 3

areas for intervention, especially given that other areas of Al Dhale’e governorate have not received assistance from any agencies and are at a high level of food insecurity. At the beginning of December, ACTED met again with the representative of MOPIC to continue the on-going discussions about district selection. Mercy Corps similarly conducted program awareness activities in the community with different stakeholders. In Sana’a (Manakha), Al Mahwit (Bani Sa’ad), and Taiz (Al Shamayatayn) districts, Mercy Corps carried out leader and community program kick-off meetings that were used as a platform to explain not only program objectives, modalities and activities, but also to provide an orientation on Mercy Corps’ vision and humanitarian principles. The program teams provided pre-distribution refresher sessions on program accountability mechanisms, procedures for voucher redemption, beneficiary entitlements, prevention of sexual abuse and sexual exploitation as well as cholera prevention messages.

Activity 1.2: Establish community committees for proper targeting of beneficiaries and identification of community asset projects The consortium partners conducted a one-day joint planning and kick-off meeting to review the progress, successes, challenges, and lessons learnt that influenced the planning and designing of the YEFA II interventions. Geographical targeting, need assessments, beneficiary selection and baseline survey have been conducted in some of the selected districts of all five target governorates. After successful finalization of the targeted districts, in consultation with the community leaders and local authorities through village vulnerability assessment and profiling, the selection of community committees have started in some villages. For example, in December, the ACTED program team started conducting a community assessment of the locations proposed by the local authorities who had been previously asked to identify villages suitable for the project and with a high expected number of vulnerable households. The assessment was finalized at the end of December, and the findings are currently being analyzed by the MEL team.

CARE and Mercy Corps held several village meeting during the assessment of community projects, together with village leadership. In some villages that the program was implemented in phase one, the committees have been retained especially for those who were active and participated in community representation. Several community meetings have been planned for January where the proposed community committee members are going to be vetted and selected openly during this community meeting.

Activity 1.3: Identify, register, and verify vulnerable households to participate in project activities Under YEFA II, this activity will start in the next reporting period after vetting and finalizing the selection of the community committees in the identified targeted areas. The consortium aims to have the final list of beneficiaries by the end of January or the beginning of February. It is worth mentioning that as a result of the fluctuation in the exchange rate between USD/YER occurring from the time of budgeting and the end of this reporting period, the consortium is projecting to increase the number of beneficiaries to be targeted under the framework of the project.

Activity 1.4: Identify and train vendors to supply food baskets to beneficiary households All partners have finalized development of procurement plans for YEFA II’s rollout, especially on food basket provision. An open tender was announced to support a country-level Master Agreement for supplying the required food baskets for beneficiary households in all the governorates where YEFA II is being implemented. The consortium anticipates the identified vendors to be able to supply the required food baskets to vulnerable households by early February. The partners are also finalizing identification of community projects to be rehabilitated and supported by the community. Once this exercise is completed, procurement of materials and tools will be initiated.

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Activity 1.5: Distribution of vouchers to verified participants During this reporting period, ACTED and Mercy Corps conducted the sixth cycle of monthly food distribution to 4,800 households targeted under YEFA I. A post-distribution monitoring (PDM) exercise was conducted afterwards to understand how the food basket has been of help to the beneficiaries in preparation for rollout of the same activity in YEFA II. Under YEFA II, this activity is planned to start in February after the identification, registration, and verification of vulnerable households is completed.

Activity 1.6: Monitor voucher distribution and redemption with vendors Mercy Corps and ACTED continued to monitor accountability of the vendors by assessing quality and quantity of food distributed against the agreed standards of the signed vendor agreements. This activity will continue after each of the six distributions that are planned to be conducted in the coming reporting periods. Despite an increase in food basket prices across the country as a result of the blockade and depreciation of the Rial, the vendors were able to meet their obligation by distributing full food baskets to 4,800 households. Voucher reconciliation was successful and the vendors have been paid.

Activity 1.7: Conduct post-distribution monitoring During the last distribution in October and November, Mercy Corps and ACTED’s MEL teams contacted post-distribution monitoring to ensure that the redemption and distribution process met the minimum protection standards and recorded any potential issues raised from interactions between vendors and beneficiaries. A total of 95% of interviewed beneficiaries reported that their main expense was food and that that their main source of purchasing food in the previous month had been food vouchers. No issues were reported and beneficiaries showed a high level of satisfaction with the services provided. From the PDM analysis, 87% were very satisfied with the food voucher distribution process, and 83% were very satisfied in the beneficiary selection and registration process while 89% were satisfied with the quality of food received.

Result 2.1: 7,582 beneficiaries receive key hygiene and nutrition messages

Activity 2.1: Select and train community volunteers Under YEFA II, this activity will start at a later date after the identification, registration, and verification of the beneficiaries is completed.

Activity 2.2: Conduct hygiene and nutrition promotion sessions with beneficiary households ACTED conducted the sixth and last round of training under YEFA I during the October distribution, which started at the end of September and was completed in October 2017. The training targeted 2,600 beneficiary households and covered the covered the topic “Safe Water and Safe Food”.

Under YEFA II, this activity will start at a later date after the selection and training of the community volunteers.

Activity 2.3: Conduct survey with sample of beneficiaries to measure hygiene practices and Infant & Young Child Feeding (IYCF) knowledge CARE was able to conduct a pre-Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices (KAP) survey in four villages (Al- Makukabara, Mesyud, Hanno and Namirya) of Al-Maqatirah District. A similar pre-KAP survey will be conducted in Al-Madaribah District in the next reporting period for three villages (Albitan Al-Ala, Al-Arah and Shabo Al-Ala). The main purpose of conducting the pre-KAP survey was to establish benchmark values for key hygiene and nutrition outcome indicators so that the indicators can be compared at the end of the project period with the post-KAP survey. 5

Result 3.1: Households are supported through 42 projects related to the construction and rehabilitation of communal assets

Activity 3.1: Identify community assets for rehabilitation/construction During this reporting period, Mercy Corps and ACTED completed a total of 20 community projects that were carried forward from YEFA I. These communal asset construction and rehabilitation projects constitute the resilience-building element of the YEFA program, executed through the FFA approach. Selected beneficiaries in locations with a stable security context were provided conditional food assistance after helping build or repair local community assets that had been destroyed during the ongoing conflict. All the completed community projects have been handed over to the community for ownership and management. The identification of community assets for rehabilitation and construction to be targeted under YEFA II is ongoing in all five target governorates and their progress will be documented in the next reporting period.

Activity 3.2: Procurement of tools/materials CARE, ACTED, and Mercy Corps are in the process of preparing a Bill of Quantities (BOQs) for the already identified community assets for rehabilitation under YEFA II. It is expected that the procurement of all tools and construction materials will be finalized by mid-February 2018.

Activity 3.3: Supervise the rehabilitation/construction work Under YEFA II, this activity will start in the next reporting period after the rehabilitation and construction work for the community projects targeted under the second phase of the project have started and will continue for the duration of the work.

Activity 3.4: Support community to develop an operation and maintenance plan Under YEFA II, this activity will start in the last quarter of the project after the identification of community projects for the second phase of the project is completed and rehabilitation and construction work have started.

Activity 3.5: Handover the asset to the community upon completion

Mercy Corps and ACTED handed over the 20 completed projects under YEFA I planned during this reporting period to the community committees for ownership, maintenance and management. Handover agreements between consortium partners and the community management committees have been signed for all project sites.

Under YEFA II, this activity will start in the last quarter of the project after the rehabilitation and construction works are completed.

Challenges: The blockade of Yemen’s ports has resulted in fuel shortages in the project area. Fuel prices remained high throughout the months of November and December 2017 due to intermittent supply. Nevertheless, this did not significantly affect movement of program teams as there was a fuel stock in the field office.

Implementation was delayed in Sana’a, Taiz and Al Mahwit Governorates due to ongoing clashes which prevented easy access to field sites. However, in the last month of this reporting period, the programs were

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able to access field sites and to carry out baseline surveys, post distribution monitoring and beneficiary selection.

With the effect of the November blockade still being realized and felt in all the markets, the program anticipates an increase in the price of food baskets. However, during the planning and kick off meeting, the consortium was able to budget a contingency kit in the event the prices rises with margin of over 10% from the previous food basket prices.

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