Will UN efforts succeed in solving Safer crisis despite Houthi intransigence?
A report issued by the United Nations revealed that it is only stepping away from raising enough funds for the operation to save the decomposed oil tanker anchored off the coast of Yemen and exposes the entire region to an unprecedented environmental disaster.
The solution is approaching
The tanker, Safer, carries more than a million barrels of oil and experts warn it could disintegrate or explode at any time; As of September 1, $68 million was pledged for the rescue – $12 million short of the UN’s $80 million target – and the UN said: “It is looking closely at how to reduce the cost of both the emergency and the installation of long-term replacement capacity for the ship anchored off the coast of Yemen.” A UN spokesperson said: “We are confident that we will get the targeted amount soon, and we still need donors to disburse the funds they have pledged,” adding that only about $16 million had already been delivered.
Houthi intransigence
In May, the pledging event in The Hague raised about $33 million, from a combination of nine European governments. The following month, Saudi Arabia said it would provide $10 million. On a smaller scale, the public crowdfunding campaign that began in June raised about $145,000 from about 2,000 individuals. It went on to say that some private companies had begun to intervene to provide financial assistance. On 25 August, HSA, the largest private company in Yemen, announced a $1.2 million donation in support of the United Nations Emergency Flagship Appeal, becoming the first private sector organization to make a tremendous donation. “We hope that this first donation from the private sector will encourage other companies around the world to contribute.” The magazine added that efforts to secure the Safer ship have been around for years, but the Houthi militia that controls the area where the ship is anchored has blocked access to the site, but with a truce now in place in Yemen, there is now some hope of breaking the impasse.
