YEMEN Contents Introduction………............................................................... 3 Methodology…………………………………………………………………. 4 Assessment Locations…………………..................................... 5 Key Findings……………………………..………………………..…………. 6 Pillar 1 – ADAPT ….............................................................. 7 – 9 Movement Trends and Intentions Shelter for the Displaced Pillar 2 – RECOVER ……………………………………………...………. 10 – 15 Protection Non-Food Items Shelter Food Security Cash and Markets Health Risks Water, Sanitation and Hygiene Safety Schooling Pillar 3 – THRIVE ……………………………………………...…………... 16 – 19 Livelihoods and Markets Women’s Empowerment Access to Justice and Civil Rights Intercommunal Relations Approach to Aid Design and Delivery Conclusion and Recommendations………………………………… 20 Young boy in Sarar district looks over an unprotected well in his village in Sarar Annex …………………………………………………………………………… 21 — 24 district. Yemen, March 2020 Cover photo: ACTED assessment team interviews community members in Sarar district, Abyan Governorate – March 2020 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1. Background and Context On April 25, 2020, the STC declared ‘self- administration’ in Southern Yemen and a state of Three Assessment Objectives The Yemen crisis which started in 2015 has led emergency in the temporary capital of Aden and to widespread displacement, poverty, and other provinces. The Yemeni government and fragmentation of central power and authority. several provinces including Hadhramaut, Shabwa, PILLAR 1: ADAPT PILLAR 2: RECOVER PILLAR 3: THRIVE The 2019 Humanitarian Needs Overview (HNO) and Abyan have rejected STC’s move. As potential estimates 24 million people, or 80% of the escalation of political unrest looms in the air, it is population, had significant humanitarian needs. paramount to obtain a comprehensive overview Affected populations include internally displaced of community needs to inform aid planning and people (IDPs), host communities, returnees, and delivery to vulnerable people who could be other marginalized groups who were affected further impacted by ensuing conflict. According to even before the conflict. Ongoing fighting the 2019 HNO, less than five assessments were continues to disrupt agricultural production completed in Abyan across key humanitarian sectors other than livelihoods and WASH. This while a blockade has steadily reduced people’s limits understanding on the situation and restricts basic food security. aid delivery. Abyan, one such affected governorate, In response to knowledge gaps and rising needs, Understand displaced Determine the impact of Identify opportunities to shocks, other than support longer-term borders Aden the interim capital of the ACTED collected basic primary information about populations and internationally-recognized government of Abyan (Lawdar, Khanfir, Zingibar, Mudiayh, and displacements on host interventions that capitalize communities to respond to on local potential and President Mansur Hadi. Composed of 11 Ahwar districts) in July 2019 to get a preliminary impact of emergencies and create collaborative development to districts, Abyan has an estimated population of overview. Due to insufficient capacity at the time displacements on IDPs, to deploy field teams for extensive data collection, 568,000, of which the majority (92%) are host returnees and host opportunities for early sustain livelihoods and interviews were conducted over the phone. communities, followed by IDPs (6%), and communities to coordinate recovery foster self-reliance General information indicated a plethora of needs returnees (2%). A small population of refugee and respond to their needs across multiple sectors and few humanitarian migrants (about 1,000 individuals) also reside in actors. To gather updated community-level the governorate. Zingibar, which has played a information in a dynamic context, ACTED Yemen’s historic role as a trading center is the largest city Appraisal, Monitoring, and Evaluation Unit and capital of the governorate. The main (AMEU) deployed staff and trained enumerators livelihoods activities in Abyan are agriculture in mid-March to Western Abyan following security Young boy in Sarar district standing in (producing around 4.7% of the country’s total assessments. The focus on the West was due to front of his home which overlooks the mountain ranges in his village – March agricultural products), fisheries, livestock high needs and proximity to ACTED’s operational 2020 breeding, and beekeeping*. bases in Aden and Al Dhale’e to coordinate a potential response. Recently, violence in Abyan has reached a new height, mostly driven by the fight against Jihadist groups and the resurgence of activities by Al- OUR GOAL Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. In 2012, extremist militants took over two districts in This assessment provides evidence-based Abyan, prompting the government to launch information through the lens of ACTED military campaigns to retake the area. Intense Yemen’s country strategy to prompt and fighting which erupted between pro-Hadi and inform aid agencies to support the recovery pro-Southern Transitional Council (STC) forces in and resilience of vulnerable people. For Aden in 2019 also spilled over into Abyan. communities in Western Abyan, the need to restore basic services and livelihood *Mapping of Local Governance in Yemeni Governorates strategies are made clear through findings Berhof Foundation January 2020 in this report. 2.METHODOLOGY 2.1 Study Areas The assessment was conducted using key Participants in the FGDs and KIIs were selected There are some limitations in terms of data quality informant interviews (KIIs) complemented with based on purposive sampling, beginning at the and translations of anecdotes from Arabic to Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and direct district administration level. ACTED’s liaison team English. As reflected in the report, data for Rasad participant observations. The assessment was arranged meetings between three district was more complete than Sarar and Sibah due to administered in three districts: Rasad, Sarar, managers and the AME and project development the availability of interviewees, ease of travel, and and Sibah across 22 locations to obtain in- management team to obtain a broad overview of willingness of participants to partake in the assessment. For example, one community leader in depth knowledge on the community-level as the area and identify relevant village-level contacts. Sarar and two in Sibah did not have time to well as gather broad data on the district-level. This strategy was employed to capitalize on local participate in the key informant interviews. These locations were selected on a pragmatic knowledge and ultimately to encourage key basis, prioritizing most populated villages in each decision-makers to spearhead development plans Unless indicated otherwise, data presented district as well as the presence of other of their respective areas. By ensuring strategic throughout this report is calculated based on humanitarian actors, safety and accessibility of planning priorities are treated as part of the work quantitative data collected via key informant survey teams in consultation with district and responsibility of district management, ACTED interviews with community leaders. Secondary Yemen, March 2020 management. Prior to field data collection, the can support local ownership over service provision. research and qualitative information from village- Sarar district representative eagerly AMEU conducted desk review of available level FGDs and interviews with service providers discusses the livelihood conditions in 343 people participated in this assessment; 73% secondary data; relevant information is are highlighted throughout the report to his area. were male and 27% female. Lower female integrated into this report where possible. triangulate and enrich findings. representation is likely due to local social norms 2.2. Data Collection where women are much less likely than men to hold decision-making positions or engage in public The assessment tools were developed by the affairs. 91 KIs were conducted: 3 with each district AMEU in collaboration with the project manager in Sibah, Sarar, and Rasad, 20 with development and technical units and approved community leaders and 68 with service providers by relevant local ministries and authorities. The such as school principals, health center managers, toolkit included a quantitative key informant religious leaders, and aid workers who have deep guide as well as a semi-structured questionnaire knowledge about the assessed areas. Information for FGDs (Annex 1). Data was collected in the was triangulated with 49 gender segregated FGDs field by a team of trained male and female participated by 252 community members. See enumerators led by three AMEU staff over a two Annex 2 for the participant list per area. week-period starting on March 15, 2020. The data submitted was then checked for 2.4. Limitations consistency and validity by comparisons across As ACTED is new to Abyan and limited secondary villages and districts as well as with secondary data exists, the assessment was designed as a rapid literature. Clarifications were sought as tool using the methods outlined above and not necessary with the supervisors of survey teams. including structured statistical household surveys. While quantitative KIIs with community leaders do 2.3. Sample Size and not produce representative data about the entire Location population, KIs who are all born and raised in the assessed village provided