Data distributed by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) show that the number of African migrants who arrived in Yemen during the first half of 2023 is three times higher than the numbers that arrived in the country over the past three years.
According to the international organization’s data, the number of African migrants who arrived in Yemen until June 2023 experienced a record increase. It exceeded 77,000 migrants, which surpasses the total for the previous year, which saw 73,000 arrivals. The year before that saw only 27,000 migrants, compared to 37,000 arrivals in 2020.
According to the report, the number recorded during the first half of this year is 321 percent higher than the same period over the last three years. This is an increase of about 147 percent on last year, 672 percent on the year before that, and about 144 percent on 2020.
Reasons for the increase
The organization attributed the significant increase in migrant flow to the ongoing conflict in African horn countries, particularly Ethiopia and Somalia, the deterioration of security, humanitarian, and economic conditions, as well as the end of restrictions that were imposed on movement due to the COVID-19 virus. The majority of these migrants aim to reach Gulf countries in search of work. However, they face violations and difficulties in Yemen and have very limited access to essential services such as shelter, food, water, and healthcare.
Joyce Msuya, the Assistant Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator, said that hundreds of thousands of migrants and asylum seekers in Yemen need urgent humanitarian assistance this year. She warned that over a million migrants and asylum seekers could lose access to basic services if the United Nations does not receive additional funding.
Msuya asserts that 300,000 migrants, refugees, and asylum seekers need humanitarian assistance this year and that they are classified among the most vulnerable groups in Yemen. They face severe protection risks and difficulty in accessing health or social services, if available, due to lack of documentation and already exhausted public resources.
The UN official said that the significant increase in the number of migrants arriving in Yemen has doubled their needs for food, shelter, and protection services, which places great pressure on financial resources already suffering from perpetual and chronic gaps.
Campaign in Shabwah
Local authorities in Shabwah Governorate (south of Ma’rib) launched a campaign to confront the influx of African migrants via the Arabian Sea coasts after a change in the course of these perilous journeys. This was due to the security measures taken by Djibouti authorities, leading to an accumulation of migrants arriving on Yemen’s coasts on the Red Sea.
Colonel Abdelkarim Al-Marouk, the Director-General of the Criminal Investigation Department in Shabwah Governorate, said in a statement conveyed by official sources that the security committee has taken several measures to limit the residence of illegal migrants in the city of Ataq, the capital of the province. These measures range from awareness-raising guidance to the application of legal procedures against those who violate these measures.
The Director of Criminal Investigation directed neighborhood officials to carry out their duties, to prevent harboring of illegal migrants, and called for further dissemination of community awareness towards the phenomenon of dealing with illegal migrants. This includes housing them, employing them, transporting them from one area to another, and the subsequent negative results. He warned of the legal measures that violators could face.
The security official pledged that the security agencies would perform their duties regarding the risks of the influx of illegal migrants, which has had a negative impact. He called on international organizations concerned with migration to carry out their assigned role in finding urgent solutions, in line with international and humanitarian laws.
