Yemen is a friendly and hospitable Middle Eastern country on the southern rim of the Arabian Peninsula place where U.S. assistance workers and their projects are welcomed. These friendly ties exist even though Yemen, birthplace of Osama Bin Laden's father, has seen important Al Qaeda operations such as training camps and the October 2000 bombing of the USS Cole.
From the crowded market in Old Sanaa to the spectacular mountains and deserts of the tribal regions, friendly shouts of "welcome" were offered to an American visitor by children, the elderly, and even the young men carrying traditional curved daggers or - outside the cities -- AK-47 assault rifles.
 The ancient houses of Old Sanaa, dating back hundreds of years, are kept in excellent condition in part thanks to U.S.-funded drainage and infrastructure projects near the old city. |
The 22 million Yemenis are quite religious Muslims and strong supporters of Arab causes such as Palestinian independence. Their traditional culture requires them to treat visitors from all countries as honored guests.
Another sign of the strength of traditional society in Yemen can be seen at the crowded Old Sanaa gold market, where shop after shop displays yellow 22 karat jewelry: the shop doors are wide open and not a single policeman or guard is needed to prevent theft.
In 2003, after an interruption of seven years, USAID restarted its assistance program, targeting five Governorates in the northeast of the country: Sadah, Al-Jawf, Amram, Marib and Shabwa. These remote areas lack adequate education, health and other services and are seen as prone to terrorist recruitment.
The focus of the aid program was on maternal and child health, basic education, income, food security and democracy.
In 2005, $14.8 million was budgeted for aid to Yemen. In 2006, USAID funding fell to $9 million after Yemen lost its standing as an applicant for Millennium Challenge Account (MCA) aid. This took place because of repression of journalists and failure to tackle corruption. In addition to the drop in USAID funds, Yemen lost $30 million in MCA support requested for 2007 as well as more than $100 million in World Bank aid.
 A midwife training at a U.S.-supported program in Sanaa, Yemen, gives a vaccination injection to a newborn baby. |
While Yemen is a delightful place to visit, with ancient cities and villages and peaceful markets that seem to come from the time of the Bible, much of the country is under the influence of tribal leaders who sometimes find it difficult to work together with other tribes or factions as a national team. In recent years, foreign diplomats and tourists have been kidnapped in tribal areas to pressure the government to provide benefits or release prisoners. The foreigners were all released after a few hours or days but those incidents discouraged tourists, investors and development.
Working in this country has proved fascinating and challenging and rewarding, to both USAID expatriates as well as the Yemeni aid staff. Teaching midwives to deliver babies and vaccinate them, keeping camels and goats free of disease, helping local councils take charge of their budgets and improving badly-needed schools are making a difference in the lives of the people of Yemen.
