Yemen gets IMF program as UN says 200,000 displaced

The International Monetary Fund has approved an 18-month policy advisory program for Yemen, as the United Nations said new fighting has displaced more than 200,000 people inside the war-hit country.

The IMF said the Staff-Monitored Program is meant to support economic stabilisation and strengthen macroeconomic frameworks. The program offers technical assistance and does not include financing.

The IMF described Yemen's economic outlook as challenging after five straight years of contraction. It said real GDP contracted by 1.5 percent in 2026, citing deteriorating terms of trade linked to the conflict in the Middle East, persistent energy shortages and weak domestic demand.

The Fund said Yemen remains heavily dependent on remittances and donor assistance to finance humanitarian-driven imports, and that reserves are expected to stay below adequate levels even with Saudi budgetary support. It said the new program aims to strengthen public finances by increasing domestic revenue and rationalising government spending.

Yemen has been in civil war for years. The Houthis control most of northwest Yemen and captured coastal areas from pro-government forces in September after fighting reignited in July.

The UN said Yemen has more than 5.2 million internally displaced people in total, with nearly two-thirds of the population needing humanitarian aid. World Food Programme figures put more than 18 million people nationwide in acute food insecurity and about 2.2 million children under five as acutely malnourished. The WFP said it needed $109 million to provide emergency food and nutrition assistance for up to 1.5 million people affected by the escalation.