Yemen Emergency Food Assistance (YEFA) Fiscal Year 2019 Annual Results Report

Agreement No. 72DFFP18GR00064 Start Date: 10/1/2018 End Date: 5/31/2020 Reporting Period: October 1, 2018 – September 31, 2019 Submission Date: November 26, 2019

Clockwise from top left: 1- Quality inspection of food commodities at supplier warehouse in by Global Communities Program and M&E Teams; 2- Beneficiaries gathering to be verified by GC staff. 3- GC staff verify food vouchers from beneficiaries to confirm receipt of food assistance; 4- A female beneficiary receives her monthly food basket in Dar Sa’ad district in Aden governorate.

YEFA Program Page i 72DFFP18GR00064 Submitted November 26, 2019 Cover Page

Awardee Name and Host Global Communities, Country

Award Number 72DFFP18GR00064

Activity Name Yemen Emergency Food Assistance (YEFA)

Activity Start Date October 1, 2018

Activity End Date May 31, 2020

Submission Date November 26, 2019

Annex A: YEFA Project Baseline Report. Annex B: FSAC Revised Minimum Survival Food Basket. List of ARR documents Annex C: YEFA Indicator Table. uploaded in FFP PRT Annex D: YEFA Project Market Assessment.

Awardee HQ Contact Ms. Pia Wanek Name

Global Communities Headquarters Awardee HQ Contact 8601 Georgia Avenue, Suite 300 Address Silver Spring, MD, 20910 USA

Awardee HQ Contact (+1) 301 587 4700 Telephone Number

Awardee HQ Contact [email protected] Email Address

Host Country Office Mr. Dar Warmke Contact Name

Host Country Office Contact Telephone (+967) 142 7425 Number

Host Country Office [email protected] Contact Email Address Acronyms and Abbreviations

CVC Community Volunteer Committee CSO Central Statistics Organization CSI Coping Strategies Index DDM During Distribution Monitoring FCS Food Consumption Score FFP Food For Peace FHP Feedback Handling Procedure FY Fiscal Year FSAC Food Security & Agriculture Cluster GC Global Communities HH Household HDDS Household Dietary Diversity Score HHS Household Hunger Scale IMPACT Integrated Modalities to Promote Agriculture, Cash for Work and Training in Yemen IDP Internally Displaced Person IRG Internationally Recognized Government MOPIC Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation M&E Monitoring and Evaluation NAMCHA National Authority for Management and Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management OCHA United Nation Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs NGO Nongovernmental Organization PDM Post Distribution Monitoring RRM Rapid Response Mechanism STC Southern Transitional Council SMS Short Message Service USAID United States Agency for International Development USD United States Dollar UN United Nations WFP World Food Program YE Yemeni Rial

Table of Contents Cover Page ...... ii Acronyms and Abbreviations ...... iii Table of Contents ...... iv Activity Interventions and Results ...... 2 Award Summary ...... 2 Output Reporting ...... 4 Outcome and Process Reporting ...... 6 Market Analysis ...... 10 Cross-Cutting Elements ...... 12 Gender ...... 12 Protection ...... 13 IDP vs. Host Community Participation ...... 14 Conflict Sensitivity and Do No Harm ...... 14 Accountability to Affected Populations...... 14 Challenges, Successes, and Lessons Learned ...... 16 Challenges ...... 16 Successes ...... 18 Lessons Learned ...... 18

Report Annexes Annex A: YEFA Project Baseline Report. Annex B: FSAC Revised Minimum Survival Food Basket. Annex C: YEFA Indicator Table. Annex D: YEFA Project Market Assessment.

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Activity Interventions and Results Award Summary

Global Communities is implementing the Yemen Emergency Food Assistance (YEFA) Program in Aden, Al Dhale, , and Dhamar governorates through market-based interventions using food vouchers. The $7 million, 21-month YEFA program began on October 1, 2018 and will run through May 31, 2020. The YEFA Program provides life-saving food assistance to 45,920 beneficiaries in the most vulnerable host communities and internally displaced households in the targeted governorates. Global Communities is implementing the YEFA Program through an integrated approach with the ongoing OFDA- supported Integrated Modalities to Promote Agriculture, Cash for Work and Training in Yemen (IMPACT Yemen) Program in the targeted areas. Global Communities submitted requests for approval to sign sub-agreements to the National Authority for Management and Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management (NAMCHA) in Sana’a in the north and the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MOPIC) in Aden in the south. Both requests were approved in February 2019, nearly four months after the application was submitted. Implementation was further delayed by challenges related to acquiring permission to conduct the baseline assessment in the north. Receiving NAMCHA’s approval to conduct the baseline took more than two months, following NAMCHA’s lengthy approval process for the sub-agreement. NAMCHA confirmed that it required further validation of all the questions by the Central Statistics Organization (CSO), the official entity and approving authority for all surveys and assessments in Yemen, before the baseline assessment could proceed. GC received the validation of the CSO in April 2019. Further reviews were conducted by the Ministries of Political and National Security. After the validation by the CSO, Global Communities (GC) took two months to begin orienting local authorities, identify most vulnerable areas, establish community volunteer committees, and register beneficiaries. The baseline assessment for the YEFA Program was carried out in April 2019 in the southern governorates and May 2019 in the northern governorates to assess the current situation of food security and to be able to measure the change on key outcome indicators after interventions. YEFA aims to provide food to 27,930 unique individuals, including 24,430 individuals benefitting from food baskets and 3,500 benefitting from RRMs. The food voucher is in line with the approved Food Security & Agriculture Cluster (FSAC) Minimum Survival Food Basket and is intended to provide 1,663 kcals of food, meeting 80% of a household’s monthly food needs. By September 30, 2019, GC had completed four monthly distribution cycles to 5,490 male and 5,381 female individuals in the south and three monthly distribution cycles to 6,847 male and 6,712 female individuals in the north, out of the total nine cycles of food distribution. The remaining distributions will take place in FY2020 to complete nine distributions for communities in the north and south. Additionally, GC selected 500 IDPs in coordination with FSAC in Al and provided a one-month food basket ration in July 2019 as part of our Rapid Response Mechanism (RRM). This support was necessary due to increased food insecurity as the

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active conflict in Qataba district in Al Dhale governorate forced people to relocate to Al Dhale city where the GC YEFA Program operates. GC and other humanitarian actors provided RRM support to minimize the shock. The August 2019 conflict in the south also created a temporary shock for beneficiaries since most agencies, including GC, needed to postpone the food basket distribution for more than a week until it was safe to enter the area. GC managed to restart the distribution quickly in order to prevent further shocks. A cost modification to the YEFA agreement was approved in September 2019 to include an additional 2,070 RRM beneficiaries, to increase the number of food distributions cycles for RRM from one to three, to modify the cost and contents of the minimum food basket to match the revised FSAC approved basket, and to extend the YEFA Program for three additional months to allow sufficient time for planned distribution cycles and a thorough close-out of the award. The cost of the food basket was increased to $94.29 to met revised FSAC standards. Global Communities’ Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) team conducted During Distribution Monitoring (DDM) assessments in all YEFA Program implementation districts during all distribution cycles. During each distribution, a sample of 25-30 individuals were interviewed to obtain information and feedback that could be used to improve the quality of program implementation for the next cycles of food basket distribution. The program team considered the findings and took appropriate measures to overcome issues. Some of the key measures taken during the reporting period to respond to findings include: 1) considering to include rice in the food basket instead of wheat; 2) instituting separate lines for female and male beneficiaries; and 3) developing guidelines for beneficiaries to change their selection of next of kin who may accept their food basket on their behalf. Global Communities conducted a Post-Distribution Monitoring (PDM) assessment in all governorates (Aden, Al Dhale, Dhamar, and Ibb) during the fourth quarter of the fiscal year. PDM assessments are conducted within two to three weeks after the distribution of food baskets to beneficiaries in order to obtain information on the appropriateness, effectiveness, and quality of assistance. While the post-distribution monitoring assessment results provided positive beneficiary feedback on the food basket distribution process, the quality of food items, and vendor treatment and safety issues, negative findings also came to light. These are now the subject of an ongoing investigation by Global Communities, and this matter has been reported to FFP representatives in Amman, Jordan and in Washington DC. Specifically, PDM findings in Ibb showed that three men and one woman were forced to pay money to the Sheikh of the village and a CVC member in order to be included in the list of beneficiaries proposed to Global Communities so that they could receive their distribution. Three beneficiaries paid 4,000 Yemeni Rial and one beneficiary paid 3,000 Yemeni Rial. In addition, the PDM findings for Dhamar indicated that 15 beneficiaries were forced involuntarily to share their food with CVC members or other people in the village. In addition to continuing its investigation, Global Communities will strengthen its processes to ensure that feedback provided to Global Communities by beneficiaries over its telephone hotline, WhatsApp account, suggestion boxes, or onsite help desks is verified and addressed in a timely and effective manner.

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Output Reporting

Table 1: Summary of Food Basket Distribution in Northern and Southern Yemen (food baskets and RRM)

Number of Beneficiaries Reached per Month Annual Total Jun-19 Jul-19 Aug-19 Sep-19 Beneficiaries (Unique) Women: Planned 5,374 13,825 12,093 13,281 13,825 Women: Actual 5,374 13,825 12,076 8,437 13,825 Men: Planned 5,483 14,105 12,337 13,550 14,105 Men: Actual 5,483 14,105 12,319 8,608 14,105

Global Communities faced delays receiving approvals from authorities in the north and the south. GC submitted requests for approval to sign sub-agreements to the National Authority for Management and Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management (NAMCHA) in late October 2018 in Sana’a in the north and to the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MOPIC) in Aden in the south. Both requests were approved in February 2019, nearly four months after the application was submitted.

Implementation was further delayed by challenges related to acquiring permission to conduct the baseline assessment in the north. Receiving NAMCHA’s approval to conduct the baseline took more than two months, following NAMCHA’s lengthy approval process for the sub-agreement. NAMCHA confirmed that it required further validation of all the baseline tools by the Central Statistics Organization (CSO), the official entity and approving authority for all surveys and assessments in Yemen, before the baseline assessment could proceed. GC received the validation of the CSO in April 2019. Further reviews were conducted by the Ministries of Political and National Security. After the validation by the CSO, Global Communities oriented local authorities, identified the most vulnerable areas, established Community Volunteer Committees (CVCs), and registered beneficiaries over the course of two months. The baseline assessment for YEFA was carried out in April 2019 in the southern governorates and May 2019 in the northern governorates to assess the current situation of food security and to be able to measure the change on key outcome indicators after interventions. In the south, we started the first food basket distribution in June 2019.

Since June 2019, GC successfully delivered four complete monthly distribution rounds of food baskets to all the targeted 5,516 individuals (2,786 men, 2,730 women) in Aden governorate and 5,355 individuals (2,704 men, 2,651 women) in Al Dhale governorate in southern Yemen. During the same period, GC delivered the first, second and part of the third round of monthly distributions of food baskets to 6,559 individuals (3,312 men, 3,247 women) in Ibb governorate and 7,000 individuals (6,847 men, 6,712 women) in of northern Yemen. In the Ibb governorate, during the month of September 2019, the team delivered 882 food baskets instead of 937 planned; the remaining 55 food baskets were distributed during October after addressing duplication of beneficiaries with

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WFP/CARE. For Dhamar governorate, the third food basket distribution to 7,000 individuals was postponed to the first week of October because Global Communities did not receive travel permits from NAMCHA in time for the September 2019 planned distribution dates.

During the month of August 2019, four households (28 individuals) did not claim their distribution in Aden governorate because the distribution took place close to the Eid holidays. However, these four households appeared again during the September distribution cycle. In Al Dhale governorate, one household (seven individuals) did not claim their food basket and could not be accessed. However, all individuals were present during the month of September, which was the fourth round of food basket distributions.

Global Communities also targeted and distributed food baskets to 3,500 individuals (1,768 men, 1,732 women) who were new Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in Al Dhale governorate as part of the RRM in July 2019. The distribution was carried out in close collaboration with UN OCHA, FSAC, and local authorities.

The value of the food basket vouchers distributed by GC for the first three cycles in the north and four cycles in south through June 2019 was $66.81. The value will be increasing in the next reporting period to match revised FSAC Minimum Survival Food Basket standards, as per the recent modification

During Distribution Monitoring (DDM) results confirmed that all participants reported their satisfaction with the quality of all food items and that they received the whole amount and all specific types of food items as Global Communities had explained to them prior to the distribution. The PDM findings had slightly different findings from the DDM result since only 93 percent of participants stated they were satisfied with the quality of food items. Seven percent of beneficiaries indicated that the wheat flour had a bad smell. GC established a committee to investigate the issue and then arranged with the vendor to replace the wheat flour for those beneficiaries who noted dissatisfaction with the quality of the wheat. Furthermore, 88 percent of respondents suggested adding rice to the food basket items while 10 percent recommended increasing the amount of sugar.

Since the start of food basket distribution, Global Communities has received an average of 21 instances of beneficiary feedback per month. With a target of resolving issues noted through beneficiary feedback within 14 days, Global Communities has required an average of seven days to resolve most issues. Feedback, such as the situation described above of beneficiaries being forced by community members to pay money to be included on beneficiary lists, has required a more extensive investigation and was therefore not resolved within the planned 14 day period.

Table 2: Food Basket Items and Quantities

No. Items Weight /Quantity 1 Wheat Flour (Whole) 75 Kgs 2 Red Beans 10 Kgs 3 Oil (Vegetable) 8 Liters 4 Sugar 2.5 Kgs 5 Salt (Iodized) 1 Kg

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Outcome and Process Reporting

Global Communities is currently implementing YEFA in order to contribute to reducing the risk of morbidity and mortality associated with extreme food insecurity amongst vulnerable households (HHs), thus increasing Global Communities’ overall impact in these communities. Through YEFA, Global Communities is targeting some of the districts with the highest levels of food insecurity, including within Ibb, Dhamar, Al Dhale, and Aden governorates.

The YEFA Program identified key outcome indicators that help to measure the project impact at the end of the program implementation period, which include: Food Consumption Score (FCS), Household Dietary Diversity Score (HDDS), Household Hunger Scale (HHS), and the household coping strategies index.

Global Communities conducted a baseline assessment considering the key outcome indicators in order to set up the baseline values. Through the baseline assessment, the YEFA project set up the benchmark for the Food Consumption Scores (FCS), established Household Dietary Diversity Scores (HDDS), Household Hunger Scale (HHS) and the household Coping Strategies Index (CSI).

The baseline results for all outcome indicators were as follows:  Food Consumption Score (FCS) across all governorates: 35% of households reported a “Poor” FCS; 43% reported a “Borderline” FCS; and 22% reported an “Acceptable” FCS  Household Dietary Diversity Scores (HDDS) across all governorates: average 4.9 score of at the time of baseline assessment.  Household Hunger Scale: 76% of survey participants reported little or no hunger.  Minimum dietary diversity of women (MDD-W): 74.5% of female respondents participating in the baseline have consumed less than five food groups.

The overall baseline result for outcome indicators confirmed that the food security status of the districts is low as expected. YEFA will employ the same methodologies during the final evaluation in order to compare and measure the change of outcome indicators.

As part of the process monitoring, YEFA regularly conducted post distribution monitoring (PDM) and during distribution monitoring (DDM). Under DDM, 25-30 individuals are interviewed during the distribution in order to obtain information and feedback that could be used to improve the quality of program implementation for the next cycles of food basket distribution. The YEFA project conducted 13 DDM assessments in the project implementation areas during the reporting period. GC collected data regarding beneficiary satisfaction with the food quality; safety and security of the distribution; satisfaction with the overall distribution process; GC staff and volunteer interactions; and any instances when beneficiaries were forced to make payments or food payments in order to become a beneficiary or to receive the food assistance under the YEFA award that GC is implementing. Please refer to the below summary DDM findings collected during the September 2019 YEFA project distribution.

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 The time spent to reach distribution points varies according to the area. Accordingly, 61% of the total sampled population traveled less than an hour to collect the food basket.  All participants reported their satisfaction with the quality of all food items, and that they received the amount and types of food items. These findings are slightly different from the PDM result of 93 percent satisfaction.  The majority (92 percent) responded they needed the received items very much, while the remaining prefer to have 20 kgs of rice instead of the 25kg of wheat flour. Respondents requesting this say that 50 kgs of wheat flour is sufficient (rather than 75 kgs).  Almost all (98%) respondents were satisfied with the distribution process including the date, time and location of the distribution.

GC’s M&E team also observed that the distribution was well organized and there were different waiting lines for women, people with disabilities, and elderly people in order to make the distribution process comfortable, easy and appropriate for these groups of beneficiaries. Furthermore, GC established an on-site help desk to provide opportunities for the beneficiaries to give any feedback, raise concerns or ask questions they may have during the distribution process. Global Communities conducted a post-distribution monitoring assessment in all governorates (Aden, Al Dhale, Dhamar, and Ibb) during the reporting period. The targeted sample size was selected using a simple random sample technique. We employed a 95 percent confidence interval and a 10 percent margin of error to determine the sample size for each governorate per post-distribution round. PDM assessments were conducted within two to three weeks after the food basket distributed to the beneficiaries. The main purpose of the post-distribution monitoring assessment is to check the appropriateness, effectiveness, and quality of the YEFA Program. Each post-distribution monitoring assessment report and key findings were shared with the Program team for their consideration of how to improve implementation for the next round of food distribution. By the end of the reporting period, YEFA conducted seven post-distribution monitoring assessments in all program implementation areas. Key findings for the post distribution assessment for the month of September 2019 included:  Of the total participants, 88 percent reported their satisfaction regarding the date, time and location of distribution points. Twelve percent were not satisfied because of the delay of the distribution date, and the distance of the distribution point from their homes.  93 percent of participants were satisfied with the quality of food items. 88 percent of respondents suggested adding rice to the food basket items, while 10 percent recommended increasing the amount of sugar.  Almost all (96 percent) participants were aware of the monthly distribution, and all respondents reported feeling safe in route to and at the distribution points. Furthermore, all the respondents are happy with the distribution team interactions.  As explained in the summary section, the PDM result in Ibb also confirmed that three men and one woman paid money to a Sheikh of the village and a CVC member in order to register in the beneficiaries list. The PDM result for Dhamar also indicated that 15 beneficiaries were forced involuntarily to share their food with CVC members or other people in the village.

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 78 percent of them are aware of Global Communities’ feedback mechanisms, and among the beneficiaries who are aware of GC feedback system, 65 percent of beneficiaries prefer to use the hotline to deliver their complaints, suggestions, and feedback while 11 percent, 16 percent, and 8 percent prefer to submit their complaints to project staff, the onsite help desk, and a community leader respectively. Case Study: From Fear to Hope

Maroof Nazeer is one of GC’s targeted beneficiaries in Dar Sa’ad district in Al Mazarie village for the YEFA program. Maroof has six family members, two male and four female members. He is the only person who generates household income. His monthly average income is 40,000 YER (approximately $160 USD). His wife is chronically sick, and he mentioned that on average her medical expenses per month is 15,000 YR (approximately $60 USD).

Maroof told GC that the income he generated on a monthly basis was not enough to cover his wife’s medical costs and household food costs. His family has resorted to depending on less preferred food, getting support from relatives, and skipping meals to cope.

Maroof’s situation changed in June 2019 since his family was provided with a food basket through the YEFA program. He was happy since his family’s food needs are met.

He informed GC that the stress and tension within the family had significantly decreased due to GC’s food assistance. He further mentioned that the family members have moved from fear to hope, since they are sure that they will receive food at least for nine months. Furthermore, his wife’s medical costs are now covered from his daily work income.

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Table 3: Progress Against the Indicators (Through September 30, 2019) Indicator Baseline Project Life Progress Cumulative Notes Value Targets Reporting Progress Period (Up to Sept 30, 2019) Goal: YEFA will deliver lifesaving food assistance to 6,560 of the most vulnerable host community and IDP HHs (49,920 total unique individuals) through market-based interventions using food vouchers. Outcome Indicators Improved Food 63% FCS 80% HHs NA NA Project Consumption Score with FCS with progress on borderline borderline this indicator and and will be acceptable acceptable reported during the end line survey Reduced Coping 11% mean 50% NA NA Project Strategy Index rCSI reduction in progress on (rCSI) (practice the mean this indicator seldom or rCSI from will be very rare) baseline to reported end line during the end line survey Increased average 4.9 50% increase NA NA Project of Household (Average in the progress will Dietary Diversity HDDS) average be reported Scores (HDDS) HDDS during the end line survey Output Indicators Number of NA 3,490 is for 9 3,490 HHs 3,490 HHs Only 3 households months rounds of receiving food food basket vouchers per distributions month for nine- have been months completed in the north and 4 in the south Number of NA 2,570 HHs 500 HHs 500 HHs 500 HHs households for three received a receiving RRM food months RRM food vouchers for three basket in Al months Dhale1

1 This distribution took place prior to the modification. Households therefore received one round of RRM instead of three.

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Number of NA 24,430 total 24,430 24,430 During the beneficiaries (Men 7,378, reporting receiving food Women quarter, all assistance through 7,280, the targeted voucher modality Boys 4,959 beneficiaries for nine-months and Girls received food 4,813) Number of NA 17,990 (Men 3,500 3,500 RRM food beneficiaries 5433, basket for Al receiving food Women Dhale assistance through 5361, Boys voucher modality 3652 and (RRM beneficiaries) Girls 3544) Amount/quantity of NA USD $66.81 USD USD $62.1 transfers/ baskets $62.1 received per month Complaints and NA 25 each Average Average of inquiries received month of 21 21 /month through the /month Feedback Mechanism Resolution time as NA 14 days Average Average of per Feedback of 7 days 7 days2 Mechanism

Market Analysis

YEFA conducted a market assessment in the project implementation area before the project implementation started. A market price assessment was also conducted to check the market price for each of the selected commodities. The main purpose of the market assessment included collecting valuable information on existing market conditions and examining the capacity of the market for YEFA food voucher program. The assessment:  Verified the availability of food commodities in the markets  Evaluated the competitiveness of the local markets  Assessed the ability of local traders to meet the increased demand of the food commodities created by the project  Evaluated trader willingness to participate in the YEFA food voucher program  Monitored the market price for the selected YEFA food commodities  Identified potential effects of the food voucher program on the market

A total of 30 traders (18 retailers, 12 wholesalers) participated in the market assessment. The market assessment results confirmed that the majority (63 percent) of traders sell all GC commodities for food vouchers. The finding confirmed that the total amount of available commodities and supplies was adequate to support the YEFA project demand. The

2 The issue regarding beneficiary payments to Sheikh and CVC took longer to resolve as explained above.

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commodity prices measured on the market were similar to what GC had budgeted. In the proposal, each food voucher was budgeted at $66.81 USD per household for one month whereas, the market assessment showed that, on average, $65 USD was the cost for one HH per month. The food basket cost under the YEFA modification increased to $94.29 USD, per FSAC recommendations. This allows an opportunity for GC to address community food preferences (the addition of rice was specifically named) in addition to making any necessary adjustments based on the current food voucher commodity prices in each region where the program is being implemented.

The assessment data showed that there is no sign of potential negative market effects due to YEFA. Generally, wholesalers have good potential and capacity for a better amount of commodity restocking than retailers. The majority (77 percent) of the traders have their own storage facilities. 93 percent of the respondents surveyed in the market assessment indicated that there were times during the past six months in which they were unable to source some of the food voucher products, due to various reasons. The reasons include the destruction of a milk factory, increases in the commodities prices, and escalating conflict and deterioration of security in areas. The traders in all governorates have the capacity to restock within one month's time if there are demands from the consumer side. Their capacity is determined by various factors. The availability of cash, transport, commodity, labor, and proximity to the source are the key factors identified by the traders. Availability of cash was identified as the main factor among many traders. Nearly 40 percent of the traders among the survey participants confirmed that they received credit from credit institutions or wholesalers.

GC also conducted a market price assessment in YEFA project implementation areas immediately after the recent conflict in south Yemen between the internationally recognized government (IRG) and the Southern Transitional Council (STC) occurred in order to assess any changes in the market price, stock and storage, and commodity availability. Traders reported that the availability of most commodities, particularly wheat flour, declined significantly in the market as a result of the recent conflict. GC vendors were forced to postpone distribution for a week (from the second to third week of September 2019) due to the lack of wheat flour in the market.

The availability of commodities have returned to the normal levels observed prior to the recent crisis following the peace agreement signed in November 2019. The market price assessment data also confirmed that all the traders have rice and 71 percent of the traders have wheat, beans, sugar, and salt in their stores. On average, the trader can restock commodities two times per month for most of YEFA project food voucher commodities if there is demand. Due to the limited purchasing power capacity of the targeted population, there is not much demand for the commodities, as expected. According to the assessment the prices of commodities are lower than what was budget as part of the recent modification.

The market assessment further collected information about whether the trader is able to purchase the commodity through credit or not. Accordingly, all traders except one stated that they managed to purchase the food basket commodities through credit. Nearly half of the traders also reported that they are able to access financial institutions or other vendors for credit. All the traders except one also reported that they sometimes sell some of the

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commodities through credit to their customers. Overall, there are no significant changes in commodity prices since the YEFA Program started the food voucher distribution. Additionally, there was no evidence of a negative effect of the YEFA project on the local market. Since the start of the food voucher distribution there have been no major delays in the food voucher distribution.

Cross-Cutting Elements Gender

Communities are fully involved in the project implementation, from the selection of vulnerable households to the distribution of emergency food baskets. GC teams also ensured the engagement of women and the inclusion of their perspectives throughout the interventions. For instance, female staff are present to facilitate female beneficiaries’ participation during monthly emergency food assistance and 31 percent of CVC members are female. Taking into consideration the roles played by women in providing and preparation of food at household level, the project also emphasized the need to have women participating in the implementation of the program. Yemen has a conservative view of women's place in society, and men are normally the heads of the family and male family members tend to take the lead in critical decision-making. As such, GC teams tried their best to ensure equal access to activities: 23 percent of the households reached were female-headed households (787), and 77 percent were male headed households (2,703). GC also prioritized women where possible by targeting women-headed HHs as beneficiaries and separately conducting sessions with women in communities led by GC female staff. GC advocates for women to be Community Volunteer Committee members. GC also paid particular attention to households with children under 5 years, elderly persons, chronically ill people and persons with disabilities.

As part of crowd management during the distribution, women beneficiaries were granted priority. GC also conducted activity monitoring during the distribution to review and take action for any challenges that female beneficiaries may encounter at the distribution sites. GC’s help desk at the distribution points also help provide an outlet for women to be able to raise their concerns, if they encounter.

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Protection

Protection concerns are rampant in Yemen’s context of conflict, presenting considerable challenges for humanitarian agencies. All GC program staff signed a code of conduct that incorporates Global Communities’ zero-tolerance policy toward sexual exploitation and abuse. Global Communities will not accede to requests by armed parties to the conflict with the following requests and demands:  To provide beneficiary information;  To be involved in or have influence over the selection of staff, or to share personal details of staff;  To provide armed or other escorts to humanitarian vehicles or personnel;  To influence the content of needs assessments; or  To deliver assistance to combatant forces or individual combatants or to give control of humanitarian stores or commodities to combatant forces.

Global Communities’ approach relies on community acceptance, including involving communities through the creation of CVCs to act as a mechanism for outreach, information, and problem-solving. Global Communities teams are continuously meeting with local leaders (i.e. Sheikhs and district council members) in the target areas to ensure their awareness and understanding of our operating principles and humanitarian principles of impartiality, neutrality, and independence as a condition of providing assistance. The staff clearly communicated to all stakeholders that no interference by any third party, including local authorities, in program implementation or commodity control will be tolerated. If any such interference takes place, YEFA Program activities will be halted. However, we confirmed that a few CVC members and Sheikhs forced some beneficiaries to make cash payments to CVC members and local elders to be added to the YEFA beneficiary list and to remain on the YEFA beneficiaries list and to receive their monthly food baskets. GC developed an investigation committee to oversee an action plan designed to mitigate and correct issues. As part of the agreed action plan, CVCs members who took money were replaced and subsequently suspended from any YEFA interventions in the future.

GC staff are properly trained and continuously operationalize the humanitarian principles and adherence to the code of conduct. Finally, Global Communities introduced accountability to beneficiaries and incorporates beneficiary feedback and complaints received from the feedback mechanisms into program design and implementation. The feedback mechanism is confidential and gives the affected population the opportunity to anonymously raise issues to Global Communities through a telephone hotline, WhatsApp account, onsite help desks, and suggestion boxes. Global Communities’ compliance staff are responsible for tracking and responding to beneficiary feedback and complaints. The team ensures that complainants remain anonymous and confidential, and they discreetly follow up on every complaint received through discussions with the complainant and community to investigate the matter and rectify errors. Accordingly, GC has confirmed sensitive cases (CVC receiving cash and food quality issue) in the YEFA Program. In both cases, GC established a committee to further investigate the situation. Based on the investigation committee recommendation, GC prepared an action plan and management response plan to address the improper conduct of the CVC members and Sheiks at fault. We have begun

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implementing the action plan, and are reviewing it on a regular basis in coordination with USAID FFP.

IDP vs. Host Community Participation

With no formal comprehensive IDP registration, the monitoring of displacement and profiling of IDPs remains challenging, especially given obstacles to access for humanitarian actors. The majority of IDPs reside in informal settlements with limited privacy, often renting accommodations or finding shelter with family or friends or in public buildings (often schools). As a result of the IDP settlement patterns in Yemen, this has at times elevated tensions between IDPs and host communities. The tension is further enhanced if the IDPs are members of marginalized groups. Discussion with the community indicated many causes of tension, including not having sufficient shelter to house IDPs in the area, the belief that resources are insufficient to support IDPs, unequal access to basic services, security threats and harassment, the spread of communicable diseases, and cultural difference between IDPs and host communities. To minimize the tensions, the YEFA Program is delivering lifesaving food assistance to the most vulnerable host communities and IDP HHs in the targeted governorates. Highly vulnerable IDPs and host community HHs have benefitted from monthly emergency food assistance from June to September 2019 in order to enable them to access to basic diversified food and fulfill immediate food needs.

Conflict Sensitivity and Do No Harm

Global Communities, in line with its standard program approach, is implementing this intervention with strict adherence to humanitarian principles and the principle of Do No Harm. Global Communities is making sure every effort is made to mitigate the potential for conflict stemming from program resources by maintaining a conflict-sensitive approach to implementation and promoting open community engagement and transparency in food distribution and assistance. Our approach includes remaining sensitive to conflict, including tensions that can arise between households when distributing assistance. Prior to the intervention, GC ensured proper security assessments were conducted along with close collaboration with local authorities. This is key to have direct access to beneficiaries.

Accountability to Affected Populations

Global Communities is committed to ensuring accountability to the beneficiaries in its programs, wherever it operates. Feedback from the beneficiaries and stakeholders are the key requirements for improving the accountability and quality of programs. In Yemen, Global Communities, has established its feedback mechanism to inform and encourage feedback and complaints from all the stakeholders, particularly the beneficiaries.

GC employed different mechanisms to assure accountability to the affected communities. Under the YEFA Program, GC facilitated community and volunteer meetings to share basic project information about the project (what we do, how we do it, who we work with, etc.) in all governorates. Community representatives and volunteers are also highly involved in

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beneficiary targeting and distribution. GC regularly conducted during distribution and post- distribution assessments in order to see the distribution coverage, assess the relevance of the intervention to the identified needs and the quality of humanitarian response based on humanitarian minimum standards. In general, GC YEFA field staff and community mobilization teams work closely with various population groups to ensure that the most vulnerable groups are involved in all processes of decision making and have safe spaces to provide feedback.

The GC feedback mechanisms utilize different communication channels to ensure the community can present their complaints and receive appropriate feedback. The mobile hotline, field team (staff) and GC help desk and suggestion boxes are the identified feedback channels for GC YEFA program interventions. Through the community feedback handling mechanisms, GC received feedbacks during the reporting period. Accordingly, we received a total of 128 instances of feedback (average of 21/month) from the community mainly through the hotline, WhatsApp account, and help desks from the inception of the project until the end of September 2019. The main feedback includes:

 Requests to have more food assistance in their villages (targeting more people)  Members of a household asking why they are not included in the list of beneficiaries  Feedback about the specific preference for a change in some of the content of the food commodity package (e.g. requesting rice to include in the food basket)  Delay of food distribution at the distribution points  Feedback on vendor treatment  Food basket registration inquiries  Requests for GC to intervene in their villages  Feedback on the quality of the distributed food  Concerns expressed from several beneficiaries about CVC members’ unwanted behavior associated with requesting money from the beneficiaries in order to add them to the beneficiary list and / or to allow them to receive the food distribution (as referenced above) Nearly all the feedback comments were addressed appropriately in coordination with the concerned program and operation team. Some of the feedback received from the beneficiaries remains under review at the time of this Annual Results Report submission, specifically the forced diversion of food aid to CVC members and the forced payment of cash from beneficiaries in some of the districts in Ibb and Dhamar governorates.

Furthermore, GC prepared feedback banners and other communication means to advertise the feedback system and to pass key feedback messages to the community. As part of accountability to the affected community, GC printed the feedback message, hotline number and the list and quantities of commodities included in each distribution as printed on the e- card and voucher. The e-card is distributed for each beneficiary and the beneficiaries use the e-card during all nine-month distribution periods. The PDM report results showed that only 78 percent of respondents were aware of Global Communities’ feedback handling mechanism, despite GC having printed the feedback message on the e-card, placed banners in the distribution points, and set up a help desk at the distribution points. GC plans to strengthen its feedback system advertisement including sending group feedback SMS message to YEFA beneficiaries.

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GC also identified key challenges and lessons for the feedback handling mechanism including:

 High need and vulnerability among IDPs and the host community compared with the level of assistance able to be offered under the YEFA Program. As a result, GC receives a significant number of feedback comments related to requests for additional assistance to households not currently covered by the assistance efforts.  Delays in responding to the community due to various reasons including security issues to access the area where the feedback reported. To mitigate the challenge, the M&E and the program teams made regular meetings, set up time to respond to feedback, and revised feedback systems to include different protocols for sensitive and non-sensitive feedback submissions.  All field teams should pass the feedback from the community to the feedback officer in order to centralize the recording of feedback in a standardized way that can be quickly acted upon. This was a challenge at the start of the project but now most field staff are clear in understanding the procedures, following trainings conducted by GC  In spite of the numerous ways to connect to the feedback mechanism, only 78 percent of the targeted population stated they were aware of the feedback mechanism. GC will continue advertising the system and plans to add more means of advertising channels including orientation of beneficiaries and sending SMS messages to YEFA beneficiaries.

In the past few months, the community has started to better engage the GC feedback system to raise their complaints and comments, which empowers the targeted communities in YEFA’s intervention areas. Furthermore, GC uses community feedback to address problems and take appropriate actions in a timely manner. GC has averaged 7 day response time to complaints received through the mechanism. The process helps to provide the opportunity for GC to learn from the community and understand the issues with the community more effectively. This helps to contribute to improved program implementation in subsequent months. Challenges, Successes, and Lessons Learned Challenges

GC has encountered a number of challenges including:  Due to the high needs prevailing in the project target areas, identification of beneficiaries and sites for project activities has proved to be challenging. The level of program response is not always commensurate with the needs on the ground.  The existence of different political actors and multiplicity of authorities in the project areas has resulted in bureaucratic processes that impeded the early commencement of program activities. Project approvals by authorities (signing of sub-agreements, granting travel approval, permitting the use of data collection tools) both at the national and governorate levels, particularly in the north, took

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longer than anticipated, thereby delaying activity start-ups in target areas during the first months of the YEFA Program.  Difficulties in conducting the baseline assessment in the north. GC required the approval of NAMCHA to conduct the baseline, which took more than two months, following NAMCHA’s lengthy approval process for the sub-agreement. NAMCHA confirmed that it required further validation of all the questions by the Central Statistics Organization (CSO), the official entity and approving authority for all surveys and assessments in Yemen, before the baseline assessment could proceed. GC received the validation of the CSO in April 2019, and this was further reviewed by the Ministries of Political and National Security. All these steps delayed the implementation of the YEFA baseline assessment.  In the north, YEFA continues facing difficulties securing travel/movement permits for national staff responsible for program implementation and monitoring.  In the south, the team faced some security issues in Waalan village in Al Dhale governorate where some local leaders were pressuring GC to include additional beneficiaries, which was not possible. The team negotiated with them through CVCs and local authorities to address the issue. This delayed distribution for one week. However, after settling the issue, the distribution went smoothly and GC did not face any problems thereafter.  Both Al Azariq and Al Qatabah districts of Al Dhale governorate have faced recurring military aggression and conflict flare-ups since the project began. This situation has forced the project to relocate its distribution centers from Al Azariq to Al Dhale town, which is safer and more easily accessible. Even though the distance from Al Azariq to Al Dhale is slightly more than 500 meters, the beneficiaries unanimously recommended the new location due to its adequate security and ease of accessibility, even for female beneficiaries. The beneficiaries also recommended Al Dhale town since they could easily access other household items at more competitive prices compared to Al Azariq district where there are few traders operating due to the conflict.  In the south, the GC team faced various security issues in August 2019 where most of the southern districts encountered armed clashes between the STC and the IRG military and this resulted in the control of Aden and Abyan governorates by the STC. The clashes caused the temporary cessation of GC activities and staff worked from home for almost five working days. At that time, the Security team managed to safely evacuate the expatriate staff from Aden to Djibouti using WFP transportation boats.  Poor roads make it difficult to reach some sub-districts, and it also sometimes makes it difficult for the vendors to deliver the food baskets to the distribution points.

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Successes

Several successes throughout the reporting period include:  GC’s ability to undertake activity implementation in most locations despite security challenges and delays in project approvals by local authorities.  GC reached to the Integrated Phase Classification (IPC) phase 4 governorates - high priority; IPC phase 3 governorates -priority areas in north and south.  GC is currently working in districts where few other FSAC partners operate and/or districts with unmet needs/response gaps.  Considering the complexity and the scale of the current crisis in Yemen, the level of flexibility and adaptability that the team showed on the ground have been one of the key success factors for the emergency response.  The FFP YEFA Program has successfully delivered four rounds of emergency food assistance to the most vulnerable and conflict-affected Success Story: Yemen Emergency Food households in Aden and Al Dhale Assistance governorates and three rounds in Ibb and Dhamar governorates. The Nabeela is a 37 year old woman, who lives in the Post Distribution Monitoring (PDM) Ibb governorate in Holyan sub-district, and she reports have found high levels of is one of GC’s beneficiaries for the emergency beneficiaries' satisfaction with the food assistance program. Nabeela is a widow and quality of the food items, together she is the sole breadwinner for her family. She with the location, date and time of has four kids and her parents are also living with the food distribution. her.

During the distribution, Nabeela stated that the Lessons Learned distribution day was a very good day because the food basket from Global Communities will

enable her family to have enough food for the Key lessons learned throughout the reporting next month. period include:  Clear communication and After her husband died during the conflict, she coordination at all levels with local asked herself, "Every day I fall asleep while thinking authorities, leaders, and where can I get food for my family tomorrow? This is communities positively impacts a huge responsibility on me”, she said. implementation of the program.  Strong initial engagement with other Nabeela is now relieved after regularly receiving the food baskets from Global Communities. stakeholders (including beneficiaries) Now she does not have to think about the food reduces the possibilities for she needs to bring to her family the next day. duplication. Day after day, she feels more comfortable and  GC regularly reviews the food relaxes because it is easier to feed her children commodities before, during and with the food basket Global Communities after the distribution based on provides. communities' feedback.  The project has learned that there is a need to complement emergency food assistance with community WASH activities, particularly public hygiene promotion and sanitation activities.

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 GC confirmed that some CVC member practices were non-compliant to established YEFA procedures. To mitigate against such incidents occurring in the future, Global Communities will use various, continuous communication channels to make the community aware of their rights.  In the past months, the community has started to widely use the GC feedback system to raise their complaints and voice, which, combined with seeing Global Communities’ response to their feedback, is empowering for the targeted communities in YEFA project intervention areas.  GC provided the FSAC Revised Minimum Survival Food Basket to the target communities however the community prefer to have rice instead of having 75 Kg of wheat. We learned that it is also good to review the food basket items with community so that possible changes can be appropriately considered, while still maintaining alignment with the FSAC

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