FAO Warns Flash Floods Threaten Yemen’s Farmland and Livestock

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Flash floods could threaten more than 400,000 hectares of Yemen’s farmland, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization has warned, cautioning that the coming rainy season may deal a further blow to the country’s fragile food security. The organisation forecast that around 1.7 million small ruminants could also be at risk from heavy rainfall expected between March and May 2026.

In its Seasonal Climate Agricultural Forecast Bulletin, the FAO warned that the anticipated heavy rains could trigger flash floods, particularly affecting highland areas before the waters flow down into lowland valleys. Its flood exposure analysis indicated that significant portions of farmland and livestock lie in high-risk watersheds across several governorates.

The bulletin identified the valleys of Seham, Zabid, Rimah and Sirdud as areas of particular concern, spanning governorates including Hodeidah, Sana’a, Ibb, Mahwit and Dhamar. According to the analysis, more than 65 per cent of the farmland at risk is concentrated in Hodeidah, with the Seham basin among the most exposed.

The warning underscores the vulnerability of Yemen’s agriculture to extreme weather, a vulnerability compounded by the effects of years of conflict. Agriculture and livestock are vital to the livelihoods of large numbers of Yemenis and to the country’s food supply, and damage to them can have serious consequences for a population already facing acute food insecurity.

Flash floods pose a particular danger to farmland and livestock. Sudden and powerful, they can wash away crops, erode soil, damage irrigation infrastructure and drown or displace animals, inflicting losses that can be devastating for farming communities and that can take considerable time and resources to recover from.

The concentration of risk in Hodeidah is especially significant given the governorate’s importance and its circumstances. A major agricultural area on the Red Sea coast, Hodeidah has also been among the most affected by the conflict, and the prospect of extensive flood damage to its farmland adds a further layer of hardship to an already strained region.

The threat to some 1.7 million small ruminants, such as sheep and goats, highlights the risk to livestock, which represents an important asset and source of livelihood for many Yemeni households. The loss of animals can deprive families of income, food and a store of wealth, deepening the economic pressures they face.

The FAO’s forecasting reflects the value of early warning in mitigating the impact of such hazards. By identifying areas at risk in advance, forecasts can help authorities and communities prepare, take protective measures and plan responses, potentially reducing the losses that flooding might otherwise inflict on agriculture and livestock.

Yemen’s food security situation is already dire, with more than 18 million people estimated to be acutely food insecure. Damage to agriculture and livestock from flooding could worsen this situation, reducing domestic food production and the incomes on which families depend to purchase food, compounding a crisis driven by conflict and economic collapse.

The interaction of climate hazards with the effects of conflict illustrates the compounded challenges facing Yemen. Extreme weather events such as flooding intersect with the vulnerabilities created by the war, and their combined impact can be especially severe, straining the capacity of communities and institutions to cope and to recover.

The pattern of flooding described by the FAO, with rains affecting highland areas before flowing into lowland valleys, reflects the topography of Yemen and the way in which water moves across its landscape. Understanding these dynamics is important to anticipating where flooding is likely to occur and to targeting preparation and response accordingly.

The specific identification of vulnerable watersheds and basins provides valuable information for planning. Knowing which areas are most exposed allows resources and attention to be directed where they are most needed, whether in preparation before the rains or in response to flooding once it occurs, enhancing the effectiveness of efforts to mitigate the impact.

Protecting agriculture and livestock from the impact of flooding may involve a range of measures, from strengthening infrastructure and managing water flows to supporting communities in safeguarding their crops and animals. Such efforts require resources and coordination, and the challenges are considerable in a country as strained as Yemen.

The FAO’s role in monitoring and forecasting agricultural conditions reflects the importance of such work to food security. By providing analysis and early warning, the organisation supports efforts to anticipate and respond to threats to agriculture, contributing to the broader endeavour of protecting food security in a country facing immense challenges.

There is a bitter irony in the threat, since the same rains that endanger crops and herds are also, in a water-starved country, a vital source of the moisture on which agriculture depends. The challenge for Yemen lies less in the rainfall itself than in the absence of the infrastructure and management needed to capture its benefits while blunting its dangers. Terraces, dams, drainage channels and water-harvesting systems that might once have tamed seasonal floods have in many places fallen into disrepair, damaged by conflict or neglected for want of investment. Rebuilding that capacity, aid officials note, would help transform a recurring hazard into a resource, but it is precisely the kind of long-term undertaking that the pressures of war have pushed to the margins.

For now, the FAO’s warning serves as an alert to the risks that the coming rainy season may pose to Yemen’s agriculture and food security. As the country contends with the intersection of climate hazards and conflict, anticipating and mitigating the impact of flooding on farmland and livestock remains an important element of efforts to protect the wellbeing of its population.