The sharp increase is being driven by diseases, including cholera and malaria, high food insecurity, and limited access to safe drinking water and other essential services, according to the analysis by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) Technical Working Group.
Yemen has been mired in conflict and economic collapse for nearly a decade. As Government forces, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, and Houthi rebels, continue to battle, more than 18 million people, over half the population, require humanitarian aid to survive.
The report covers the period from November 2023 to October 2024.
It found that the number of children under five in Government-controlled areas who are suffering from acute malnutrition rose by 34 per cent compared to last year.
Overall, some 600,000 boys and girls are affected, including 120,000 who are severely malnourished. Additionally, around 223,000 pregnant and lactating women in these areas were found to be acutely malnourished.
For the first time, the most severe level of malnutrition - extremely critical acute malnutrition – was reported in two districts in the southern lowlands of Hudaydah governorate (Al Khawkhah and Hays), and another in Taiz (Al Makha).
The report noted that Mawza district in the Taiz lowlands is also projected to join them.
"These districts require immediate intervention to prevent increased morbidity and potential mortality among children under five years of age," the experts said.
