Yemen remains one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. In 2023, approximately 21.6 million people, representing 80 percent of the population, require humanitarian assistance due to the impacts of 8 years of conflict, economic collapse, natural disasters, and the COVID-19 pandemic. These circumstances have resulted in acute food insecurity for more than half the population, internal displacement of over 4 million people, and a near-total collapse of the health system. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) attributes nearly a quarter of a million deaths to these devastating circumstances.

The ramifications of armed conflict and the crumbling economy, combined with deeply entrenched patriarchal social norms, have disproportionately affected Yemeni women and girls, amplifying existing inequalities. Women represent 49% of people in need of humanitarian assistance. One in three displaced households are headed by females, increasing their vulnerability to violence. Over eight million women and girls in Yemen are suffering from hunger, and over seven million women and girls have no access to adequate water sources. With the health system in shambles, women's access to essential sexual and reproductive health services has been severely curtailed. Violence against women and girls, already a grave concern prior to the pandemic, has escalated, with displaced women and girls, female-headed households, and those with disabilities especially at risk. Moreover, girls are increasingly vulnerable to child marriage, human trafficking, and child labor. Protection mechanisms for women and girls are either absent or overstretched, and their rights continue to worsen.

Yemen's gender inequality index has consistently ranked poorly, with the nation placed last in the World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Gender Gap Report from 2006–2021. In 2021, Yemen ranked among the five countries that had the worst strain in terms of women’s economic participation, political empowerment, and educational attainment. It also ranked third to the last out of 170 countries in the 2021/22 Global Women Peace and Security index.

According to the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund’s (UNICEF’s) humanitarian report, the plight of children is similarly dire. Thousands of children have been killed or maimed, with many more recruited into fighting since the conflict's onset. The conflict has aggravated the existing malnutrition crisis, resulting in acute malnutrition in approximately 2.2 million children, with over 540,000 suffering from severe acute malnutrition. The conflict has also severely disrupted access to education, leaving over 2.7 million children out of school and heightening their vulnerability to various forms of exploitation.

Despite these challenging circumstances and numerous restrictions, women in Yemen have always been at the forefront, working to promote peace and human rights, including children's rights. Women are spearheading peacebuilding efforts to end armed conflicts over land and water resources and advocating for the release of arbitrary detainees, end child recruitment, and improve access to humanitarian aid. The initiative titled "Towards enhancing the resilience of women human rights defenders in Yemen to advocate for women’s and children’s rights" was developed to support these women human rights defenders (HRDs). It aims to strengthen their skills to document human rights violations and facilitate their access to international accountability mechanisms.