Food assistance covering gaps and responding to the ongoing emergency for people in acute need in most affected districts of Hajjah, Al Mahwit and Al Dhale as per YHF allocation strategy priority 2 ZOA will provide 1,952 IDPs HHs in selected districts of Bani S’ad in Al Mahwit (822 HHs), Khayran Al Muharraq in Hajjah (765 HHs) in the north and Q’atabah Al Dhale (365 HHs) in the south with cash assistance through 6 continuous rounds targeting the same household every month. The project is aligned with the 2020 HRP (extended version) strategic objective number 2, with the main objective of the allocation, which is to provide immediate funding to assist people in acute humanitarian needs with a view to mitigate the risks of famine and negative consequences of COVID-19 in Yemen and with the FSAC priority to provide to the most vulnerable acutely food insecure IDPs living in deplorable conditions in collective centers or with host families with immediate life-saving emergency food assistance each month, allowing them to meet their basic food needs.
In November 2020, ZOA conducted a Rapid Need Assessment (RNA) in the targeted governorates based on the selection of food insecure priority districts identified by the FSAC Cluster. Food security needs are high in the governorates and selected districts of Bani S’ad in Al Mahwit  Khayran Al Muharraq in Hajjah  and Q’atabah in Al Dhale 
ZOA will target 1952 HHs, an estimated 13,664 beneficiaries of whom 3,361 are men, 3,375 women, 3,526 boys and 3,402 girls. 
Th project will have the following main activities:
1-	Detailed needs assessment
2-	Coordination with stakeholders
3-	Community mobilization
4-	Identify and register beneficiaries, 
5-	Conduct baseline survey
6-	Monthly UCT/MFB (as per cluster guidance) distributions to 1,952 IDPs HHs in selected districts of Al Mahwit (822 HHs in Bani Sa’d), Hajjah (765 HHs in Khayran Al Muharraq) and Al Dhale’e (365 HHs in Qa’atabah) through a financial service provider for a period of 6 months
7-	Conduct PDMs
8-	Conduct market monitoring
9-	Conduct end line survey

Potential risks that could jeopardize project implementation in the targeted location are security and/or climate reasons, cash related risks, delay/denial of government permission and communities non acceptance of proposed activities. ZOA will mitigate the mentioned risks by continuously monitoring the security situation, keeping close contact with other agencies, rigorously selecting and monitoring the work of the finance service provider, developing close relationship with communities in the project area and ensuring the government is aware of the project from the beginning and throughout the project lifetime answering any concerns they might have. In addition, ZOA has consulted with the community during the design of this project and will continue to do throughout project implementation through the formation of Community Development Committees (focused on food assistance) to ensure beneficiaries feedback is taken into account in any action. ZOA will implement the project directly as it has the expertise, presence on the ground and capable personnel to carry out the project. ZOA has been operating in Yemen since 2012 and some of the main interventions so far were food basket and cash distributions, implementation of home-gardens, rehabilitation of water and sanitation systems and livelihoods projects. ZOA has established presence in the targeted governorates including current projects and secured interventions for 2021.