Yemen

Nearly 11 million Yemeni women and girls are in need of humanitarian assistance in 2026.  Women and girls living under Houthi control face significant restrictions on movement, dress, and employment amid rising rates of child marriage, particularly among displaced girls. Women and girls are at heightened risk of violence by both intimate partners and state authorities, while women who are arrested are often imprisoned beyond their sentences, as authorities will only release them to a male relative. Movement restrictions also impede women’s  ability to flee from violence and Houthi airstrikes—as well as those launched by the US—which frequently hit civilian areas. Yemen’s future remains precarious amidst regional volatility, with conflict leaving women and girls vulnerable to aid blockades, displacement, injury, and death. Yemen has been largely reliant on foreign aid to provide basic nutrition, medical care, and safe spaces for women and girls, but severe funding shortfalls and cuts to humanitarian assistance have reduced access to essential goods and services. These challenges are particularly acute for pregnant and nursing women who face barriers to reproductive and maternal healthcare amid shortages of functioning health facilities and female health workers. Climate-related shocks, including flooding, are compounding these vulnerabilities by displacing communities, damaging infrastructure, and increasing pressure on already limited water and health services.

With political negotiations making little sustained progress and regional tensions continuing to shape the conflict, prospects for an inclusive peace process remain limited. Nevertheless, Yemeni women remain at the forefront of advocacy and response, serving as rights defenders, civil society actors, aid workers, and journalists despite facing entrenched repression, including violence and imprisonment. Women continue to advocate for enhanced political representation, achieving notable progress after women were appointed to Yemen’s cabinet in February 2026 for the first time in more than six years, securing three of 34 ministerial posts. Also in 2026, Yemen appointed its first female foreign minister, Afrah al-Zouba, and first female ambassador to the US, Jamila Ali Raja. Though women’s representation remains well below the 30 percent quota, these appointments of women to highly visible government positions reflect the sustained advocacy by Yemeni women for greater inclusion in national governance.

Fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed Yemeni government forces has sharply escalated since late August 2026, marking the most serious deterioration since the 2022 UN-brokered truce. The resurgence of conflict has displaced tens of thousands of people and raises the risk of a broader return to war.  For women and girls, Houthi territorial advances risk placing more women and girls under the group’s control and exposing them to heightened risks of gender-based restrictions and repression.

Nearly 11 million women and girls require urgent humanitarian assistance and protection services across Yemen, amid displacement, widespread food insecurity, and rising fuel costs. Yemen has one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world, while aid cuts and the destruction of healthcare infrastructure compound risks for pregnant and breastfeeding women. Meanwhile, economic insecurity and poverty are forcing families to resort to harmful coping strategies such as child marriage. The resurgence of fighting is likely to further strain access to already-limited humanitarian assistance and essential services.

Women and girls continue to face widespread gender-based violence, including psychological and physical abuse, denial of resources and services, and technology-facilitated violence, while sexual violence remains significantly underreported. In Houthi-controlled areas, restrictions on women’s movement, access to services, and use of technology further limit their economic and civic participation. Houthi forces have also been accused of conflict-related sexual violence, including against women in detention. Shrinking civic space and targeting of women journalists, human rights defenders, and aid workers further constrain women’s ability to advocate for inclusive peace and security.

Recurrent flooding is compounding the effects of conflict, economic precarity, and displacement across Yemen, with particularly severe consequences for women and girls. In flood-affected communities, 100 percent of women interviewed reported feeling less safe in the aftermath, while more than two-thirds reported lost income and increased unpaid caregiving responsibilities. Women are also largely excluded from disaster preparedness: 79 percent of respondents reported that women and girls do not have equal access to early-warning information, while 74 percent said women are not involved in related decision-making. As climate shocks become more frequent amid renewed conflict, women’s exclusion from disaster preparedness and recovery risks further entrenching gendered risks associated with climate shocks.

The growth of women-led businesses in Yemen is providing an important source of household income amid high unemployment and broader instability. In Taiz, women are launching and managing businesses, with some reporting that their earnings help sustain their families after livelihoods were disrupted by the war. Women’s growing role as economic actors and household decision-makers presents an opportunity to strengthen women’s economic agency and resilience, particularly through greater access to financing, support, and freedoms.

Women have been appointed to Yemen’s cabinet for the first time in more than a decade, securing three of 35 ministerial posts as announced by the newly formed government in February 2026. Notably, a woman will serve as the Minister of Planning and International Cooperation for the first time in the country’s history. Though women comprise just nine percent of the cabinet—well below the 30 percent quota agreed upon at the prior National Dialogue Conference—these appointments mark a significant milestone and reflect the sustained advocacy by Yemeni women for greater inclusion in national governance.