Hodeidah, Yemen – Yemen’s first Centre for Infectious Diseases in Hodeidah City at the Al-Thawrah Public Hospital is officially opened.

With funding and support from the World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Yemen Emergency Crisis Response Project (YECRP), together with local partner, the Social Fund for Development (SFD), completed construction of this specialized centre which will provide critical capacity to control and treat infectious diseases in Hodeidah.

“Due to damage, lack of supplies and limited staffing, only 50 per cent of Yemen’s health facilities are functioning,” explains Auke Lootsma, UNDP Resident Representative. “Hodeidah is significantly impacted by the ongoing violent conflict, resulting in residents suffering from limited access to medical services and reoccurring disease epidemics such as diphtheria, dengue, malaria, tetanus, tuberculosis, SARS, and pneumonia,” he adds. “This new facility can save thousands of lives and prevent disease epidemics.” Despite having relatively modern medical equipment, Al-Thawrah Public Hospital – the only medical facility admitting patients from Al-Mahwit, Hajjah, Hodeidah, and Raymah – has struggled to serve those in need. According to the Tropical Medicine Centre at the Hospital, between November 2019 and March 2020, the hospital received over 5,200 infectious diseases cases, of which more than 50 were fatal.