Saudi Arabia Pledges $500Mln To Aid Humanitarian, COVID-19 Response In Yemen - Official

Saudi Arabia plans to allocate $500 million this year to support humanitarian programs and the response to the novel coronavirus outbreak in Yemen, King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center Supervisor-General Abdullah Alrabeeah said on Tuesday during a high-level pledging event

UNITED NATIONS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 02nd June, 2020) Saudi Arabia plans to allocate $500 million this year to support humanitarian programs and the response to the novel coronavirus outbreak in Yemen, King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center Supervisor-General Abdullah Alrabeeah said on Tuesday during a high-level pledging event.

The event, organized jointly by the United Nations and Saudi Arabia, aims to mobilize $2.41 billion to cover critical humanitarian programs in Yemen, including those to counter the novel coronavirus outbreak, from June to December.

"I am very pleased to announce that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has pledged $500 million to support the Yemen humanitarian response plan 2020 and the COVID-19 response plan in Yemen," Alrabeeah said.

Of the total amount pledged, $300 million will be allocated to the United Nations agencies and the remainder $200 million will be given to King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center to support aid programs in Yemen, Alrabeeah also said.

An additional $30 million will fund the third phase of the so-called Masam project for landmine clearance, bringing the total amount of all phases to $100 million, Alrabeeah added.

During the pledging event, other countries have also announced their plans to support humanitarian action in Yemen. Germany said it will contribute nearly $140 million, the United Kingdom pledged $200 million, Canada pledged $40 million, Russia pledged $4 million, Japan $41.2 million and South Korea pledged $100 million.