In Yemen all hope is pinned on peace. “We live in a situation of extreme vulnerability, but we have to take action. We try to survive every day and at the same time we fight to transform the way of thinking of our people”, says Iman Haddi Ghaleb Al-Hamli by video call from Abbis (Yemen). At 35 years old, this entrepreneur in a rural area in the north of the country leads a group of women who installed a solar power plant that provides electricity to the inhabitants of their village.
In the Arab country, extreme poverty could be eradicated in a generation if the war ceases. This statement is included in the latest report of the United Nations World Development Program (UNDP) on Yemen, presented on November 22. Since 2015, the country has witnessed armed clashes between government forces, backed by the military coalition led by Saudi Arabia, and the Houthi rebels, backed by Iran. More than 15 million Yemenis live below the poverty line. The war has resulted in a crisis that is affecting livelihoods, food prices and the deterioration of basic services such as health and education.
“We don't want war. We are aware of the benefits of peace. We live with the hopelessness of our daily reality, but we cling to the desire to be able to rebuild our country,” Haddi said. Support for recovery must go far beyond infrastructure, since people must be put at the center, suggest the UNDP. "It is expected that investments focused on agriculture, the empowerment of women, the development of capacities and effective and inclusive governance and institutions have the greatest development performance”, claims the international organization.
The UN places special emphasis on the importance of women's empowerment for recovery. "According to our analysis, efforts focused on women and girls in Yemen can lead to a 30% increase in GDP by 2050 [which in 2020 amounted to 16,495 million euros]," says Noeman Alsayyad, UNDP spokesman, by phone. . "In addition, there would be a halving of maternal mortality by 2029. Right now, complications related to childbirth are the leading cause of maternal and infant death."
Iman Haddi has inspired other women. Proudly, she gives the example of Zahra: “I convinced my friend Zahra to install the electricity system in her house and for her to buy an electric blender to make incense and then sell it. Right now she has an income that allows her and her family to get ahead.” She continues listing and talks about Faleha who, thanks to electricity, has managed to buy a sewing machine and sell clothes to help her parents who are elderly and live in a cabin.
Yemen is considered the biggest humanitarian crisis in the world, largely due to the ravages of this conflict. The war broke out in 2015 and has claimed more than 377,000 victims, as concluded by the UNDP in its report, which has also made a count of 154,000 deaths directly due to situations of combat and violence. Meanwhile, another 223,000, almost 60% of the total, have lost their lives due to indirect causes, that is, due to the social damage caused by the war.
The UN estimates that one in four people has lost their job and the majority of the population lives in job insecurity and without resources to cover their basic needs. Haddi is clear that the profits from the solar plant will serve to "provide loans that are easy to repay" so that the women who work with her can open their small businesses. “This will create new employment opportunities and expand the services available in the community.”
The UNDP document concludes that another future is possible thanks to the young population that makes up the social majority. “I am not the only woman who has ambitions and wants to fight despite living in a devastated country,” Haddi insists. She knows many young women who dream of becoming an entrepreneur, of being independent in a very conservative society, but above all, of being able to live in a safe environment without threats.
Iman Ghaleb Al-Hamli boasts that she has been named one of the BBC's Most Influential Women of 2020 for inspiring positive change in rural Yemen. The list, compiled by the British public broadcaster, includes the Prime Minister of Finland, Sanna Marin, the actress Michelle Yeoh, and the American actress and activist Jane Fonda. The Yemeni's goal is to develop a large solar plant that will serve the 3,600 homes in her district.
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The youngest look forward to a future of peace. "Yemen is a country whose majority of the population is very young," says Alsayyad, the spokesman for the UN body. If the war persists, by the year 2030 1.3 million people will have lost their lives, and 80% of them will be under five years of age, according to the United Nations report in an attempt to put figures on the consequences. not to act
The crisis has already led 4.9 million more people to malnutrition, and the report projects “a devastating image”, explains the UN spokesman. Malnutrition will grow to 9.2 million by 2030 if the war persists; for the same year, the number of people living in extreme poverty would increase to 22 million, 65% of the population, according to the document presented by the UNDP.
During the six years of war, according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR), more than a million people were displaced. Since the start of the new offensive in Marib, last September and some 172 kilometers from the capital Sanaa, some 40,000 people have been forced to flee. This is an area that already housed displaced people from all over the country. The UN demands a ceasefire and denounces that these displacements "are increasing the need for shelter, essential household items, water and sanitation, education and protection services, especially for children."
During the last few months, the intensification of the confrontations has caused the closure of five accommodation centers managed by UNHCR. In addition, the population is subjected to "fear and panic" and struggles to access humanitarian aid.
“The two sides are fighting for the future, but the report says that if the war doesn't stop there will be no future. It would benefit everyone, and above all the Yemeni people,” adds Alsayyad. The UN warns that if peace does not come, the direct or indirect victims of the war could skyrocket to a million and a half. They estimate that hunger, water scarcity and the spread of disease are causing 60% of deaths in the country.
During the last few months, the intensification of the confrontations has caused the closure of five accommodation centers managed by UNHCR. In addition, the population is subjected to "fear and panic" and struggles to access humanitarian aid. “The two sides are fighting for the future, however, the report warns that if the war does not stop, there will be no future. It would benefit everyone, and above all the Yemeni people,” adds Alsayyad.
The six years of fighting have diminished any perspective of economic growth, which is estimated to have been 126,000 million dollars (110,000 million euros) of Yemeni GDP. The study reveals that, if hostilities cease, by 2050 it would amount to 450,000 million dollars (about 400 million euros). On the contrary, if the conflict persists and peace does not come, the number of victims could skyrocket to over a million in less than a decade.
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