The crisis in Yemen has threatened the livelihoods of many people. When the conflict escalated in 2014 and 2015, the need for development projects in Yemen skyrocketed. The U.N. estimates that 21.2 million people in Yemen are in need of assistance, which is 82 percent of the population. This leaves only a small percentage untouched by the conflict.

Mohammed Mansour Yahiya is a coffee farmer affected by the conflict that arose in Yemen. In 2015, the suspension of salaries due to the conflict worsened his chances of providing for his family. His work and livelihood found hope when the USAID contributed just over $15 million to the Yemen Emergency Crisis Response Project (YECRP). Through this USAID fund and implementation by the UNDP in partnership with the Social Fund for Development, small farmers found solace in the Small and Micro Enterprise Promotion Service intervention project. This project seeks out farmers to modernize technologies and methods of production. Mohammed Mansour Yahiya became one of 350 coffee farmers supported by this project, which enabled their coffee to reach markets. Development projects in Yemen such as this one restore hope to individuals.

The Yemen Multisector Humanitarian Response Programme follows the YECRP in providing humanitarian aid in the form of food security. This project partners with NGOs to seek out malnourished individuals, the most vulnerable in Yemen, and provides cash and voucher assistance. This program works to eradicate malnourishment and integrate prevention and treatment of the condition through three sectors: nutrition, sanitation and health. Progress is being seen via partnerships with CARE, ACTED and Oxfam.

The third development project within Yemen is the Integrated Urban Service Emergency Project, which restores access to crucial urban services. With $150 million alloted for this project, it aims to support the restoration of safe water, sanitation, transportation, energy and solid waste management, while using local resources to improve the economy and lives within Yemen through employment and self-sufficiency.

Continuing to build self-sufficiency and developing Yemenis’ skill base is the Smallholder Agricultural Restoration and Enhancement Project for Yemen. The project strives to increase the use of productive and nutrition-enhancing agricultural practices. It works to increase production, income and nutrition through strengthening the community land and water management and efficient and responsible animal husbandry.

Developing farming skills and agriculture techniques provides a basis to grow the economy, and with equal access to medical health and education the quality of life will increase. The Second Basic Education Development Project, with a budget of $66 million, trains 68,000 teachers, headmasters and supervisors in Yemen. The project’s efforts will build additional classrooms, train headmasters and recruit and hire 700 rural women as teachers. Also included in this project is funding for poor families in rural areas to assist with equal opportunities for girls to attend school.

These development projects in Yemen seek to close the economic gap between Yemen and other countries and to provide security during the crisis. These projects aim to help the people of Yemen and ensure that the basic needs of the most vulnerable populations are being met.

– Bronti DeRoche

Photo: Flickr