Yemen continues to face one of the most complex humanitarian and political crises globally, with recurrent conflict, disrupted health systems and constrained operational access. Maintenance of even basic public health functions in this environment is challenging.
Over the past several years, support from the Pandemic Influenza Preparedness (PIP) Partnership Contribution (PC) has played an instrumental role in sustaining, modernizing, and progressively strengthening Yemen’s health security and influenza preparedness capacities. Rather than financing short-term interventions, PIP PC funds have successfully driven a strategic transition toward a structured, standardized, and sustainable approach to national preparedness.
The 2024–2025 biennium marked a key milestone in this transition, focusing on consolidating systems, strengthening coordination and embedding preparedness into national structures.
Strengthening surveillance and reconnecting globally
A major achievement has been the establishment of standardized national operational guidelines and procedures for sentinel influenza surveillance. PIP funding spearheaded the development of the National Surveillance Protocol and comprehensive Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for influenza and other respiratory tract infections, while simultaneously supporting the establishment of National Rapid Response Teams (RRTs). The strength of this institutional framework was proven during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Yemen’s National Pandemic Influenza Preparedness Plan (2019–2023) provided the essential blueprint for the country's crisis response. During the acute phase of the pandemic, existing influenza sentinel networks were successfully leveraged as the core structural and data-reporting framework, ultimately culminating in the integration of COVID-19 and influenza into a single, cohesive national respiratory response plan.
To bridge national operations with international frameworks, PIP support has systematically standardized biosafety and logistical workflows. Laboratory and surveillance personnel received comprehensive training on advanced specimen collection techniques, strict cold-chain management, and the safe packaging and shipment of infectious substances. These workflows operate in strict compliance with the Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS) guidelines and International Air Transport Association (IATA) regulations. This sustained logistical and capacity support proved vital in overcoming profound security and geographic constraints, enabling Yemen to resume international virus sharing for the first time in years.
Despite significant logistical and security constraints, in May 2024, 50 influenza samples were successfully shipped to a WHO Collaborating Centre in London, restoring Yemen’s contribution to the Global Influenza Surveillance and Response System (GISRS) and supporting global monitoring of circulating strains.
Sustained investment in human resources and diagnostic infrastructure has remained essential to maintaining health security amid ongoing system constraints. On the epidemiological side, capacity-building initiatives have drastically enhanced frontline operational capabilities. More than 240 frontline health workers, including surveillance officers and RRTs, have been extensively trained in rapid outbreak response, active case detection, field investigation, and standardized epidemiological reporting.
Concurrently, PIP funding has advanced diagnostic resilience across laboratory networks, focusing heavily on the Central Public Health Laboratory (CPHL) and its affiliated sentinel sites. This has been achieved through the targeted procurement and distribution of critical diagnostic reagents and specialized laboratory consumables. To maximize the utility of these supplies, 40 laboratory technicians underwent intensive technical training to enhance their practical skills in polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing methodologies, complex data analysis, safe specimen handling, and foundational genomic sequencing. This clinical workforce is further supported by an ongoing digital transformation. The successful national rollout of the EMFLU 2.0 platform has enabled seamless, real-time reporting from sentinel sites across the country, vastly accelerating data quality and transmission speeds despite persistent internet connectivity and operational access challenges. Together, these achievements demonstrate that robust diagnostic capacity can be successfully built and maintained even within a highly constrained environment.
PIP support has also facilitated a stronger multisectoral approach to influenza pandemic preparedness through One Health coordination that brings together human, animal and environmental sectors for improved joint risk assessment and preparedness planning.
At the community level, engagement efforts have reached teachers, community leaders and religious figures, helping to address misinformation and promote health protective measures. More than 1000 educational materials were distributed to strengthen influenza awareness and build trust in science.
A critical step towards sustainability has been the development of the National Preparedness Plan for Influenza and Other Respiratory Threats (2025–2030), aligned with the WHO Preparedness and Resilience for Emerging Threats (PRET) framework.
This plan reflects a shift from reactive emergency-driven response to proactive long-term, system-based preparedness, integrating surveillance, laboratory strengthening, risk communication and multisectoral coordination.
A pathway to resilience
Yemen’s experience highlights the importance of sustained, predictable support in fragile and conflict-affected settings. Despite ongoing political instability and operational constraints, PIP-support has contributed to enabling the country to maintain and strengthen pandemic influenza preparedness capacities.
These gains go beyond influenza. They contribute to broader health security, ensuring that Yemen remains connected to regional and global systems while building a more resilient foundation to respond to future health emergencies.