(MintPress) – A report from the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) shows that 1 million Yemeni children are acutely malnourished. An additional 100,000 children are underfed, contributing to one of the worst food shortages worldwide. While financial pledges from the U.S., Saudi Arabia and other wealthy donor countries have been strong, internal political strife and resource depletion continue to plague the impoverished nation.
Fragile security undermines development
Yemen remains one of the more volatile countries in the world, having ousted long-time President Ali Abdullah Saleh in November 2011. The new President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi heads the transitional Yemeni government and has promised to gradually demilitarize urban areas while remaining dedicated to maintaining security for the civilian population. A U.N. Security Council meeting May 29 indicated that states in the Security Council believe the political transition is mostly on track, citing the Transition Agreement, signed November 2011 by rival political forces in Yemen.
The agreement gives detailed plans for the formation of the Government of National Unity, the restructuring of the armed forces, future presidential elections, the peaceful transfer of power and the recent decision to prepare for a national dialogue conference.
There are, however, lingering concerns as Yemen remains highly divided along sectarian lines. There are both Sunni and Shiite populations as well as tribal rivalries threatening national stability. Perhaps most concerning for Yemeni policy makers is the presence of al-Qaida and affiliated terrorist groups that actively carry out attacks against military and civilian targets.
For example, a May terrorist attack in the capital Sanaa, left more than 100 people dead and countless wounded. Al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula claimed responsibility for the attack. The continued U.S. drone campaign in Yemen has eliminated some known terrorist targets, including Anwar Awlaki and Abu Yahya al-Libi among others. However, the soaring civilian deaths caused by drone attacks embolden hardliners and turn allies into enemies in the fight to eradicate terrorism.
In fact, during the first six months of 2012, 140-176 people were killed in Yemen. Of this number, at least 46 were known to be civilians, according to the Center for Investigative Reporting. Of this number, 58-146 were civilians and 24-30 were children.
Internal conflicts exacerbated by U.S. drone strikes have produced large numbers of internally displaced people (IDP), many of whom are dependent upon food aid programs. As many as 670,000 IDP’s rely on food aid in the south and north of the country, according to United Nations figures.
Geert Cappelaere, UNICEF’s representative in Yemen, commented on the dire situation in a recent public statement saying, “We want to make this a priority because of the size of the problem. It is an emergency very much comparable to the Horn of Africa and the Sahel, but it is not getting as much attention.” The problem is only beginning to receive international attention. However, limited, dwindling natural resources have made Yemen dependent upon food imports and aid programs.
Yemeni natural resources
Yemen is a relatively small oil producer and is not a member of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Oil exports average about 400,000 barrels per day, according to Library of Congress Research Division. This production is expected to plummet in the coming years because of a dwindling supply of oil which continues to account for 70-75 percent of government revenue and almost 90 percent of total Yemeni exports. The reliance upon a single, non-renewable resource has forced Yemen to import much of its food supply.
Mohammad El-Khouhene, the country director of the World Food Program, describes the situation in a 2008 Al Jazeera interview, saying, “Yemen is currently importing between 75 and 90 percent of its food requirements, leaving the population at the total mercy of the volatile international food market.”
This is problematic considering there has been little effort to develop a legitimate multi-sector economy that will help transition Yemen away from a finite oil economy. Geological estimates are imprecise, but by some measures Yemen could run out of oil by 2017, a troubling prospect given the already unstable political situation and growing malnutrition across the country.
Yemen has a population of approximately 25 million and nearly a 2.6 percent annual growth rate, making it one of the fastest growing countries in the world, according to the CIA World Factbook. This, too, has exacerbated an already difficult situation in a country straining natural resources and importing much of its food supply.
Perhaps most troubling is the lack of fresh drinking water throughout much of the country. Cappalaere, UNICEF’s representative in Yemen, comments on the dwindling supply saying, “Close to 60 percent of Yemenis have difficulty in getting access to drinking water. Last year’s conflict was about politics, but what will be the next source of conflict? – it may well be the struggle for water.”
Water, a resource already in short supply, is being siphoned for the cultivation of Qat, an illicit drug consumed widely across Yemen and the Horn of Africa.
Qat production
Qat is a leafy green plant with mild narcotic properties. The plant if chewed, produces a moderate euphoric stimulation for users. The plant is widely consumed by Yemeni citizens and is now arguably a part of the culture as many citizens, especially men, gather daily to chew qat while discussing social and political matters.
In 1980, the World Health Organization classified Qat as a drug that can produce mild to moderate psychological dependence.
Tim Marshall, a foreign affairs editor in Yemen, estimates that 80 percent of men, and 30-40 percent of women chew the leaves on a daily basis. The enormous demand for Qat is consuming 20-40 percent of Yemen’s rapidly decreasing water supply.
According to a 2008 report by the World Bank, half of all Yemenis live on less than $2 a day. 10 percent of the average Yemeni citizens’ salary goes to Qat, straining limited family budgets for food, medicine and other essential goods.
Farmers have responded to the overwhelming demand. Many have chosen to plant Qat instead of other staple crops because of increasingly volatile swings in food prices. Additionally, Qat is a sturdy crop that can be grown nearly year round in the sometimes harsh weather common in the region.
While Qat may be providing farmers with a steady income for now, the large amount of water required for its cultivation is decreasing the production of locally grown food crops while exacerbating malnutrition in Yemen. In response to the deepening crisis, many countries, including oil rich Gulf nations, have made generous aid pledges.
International response
The international response, at least in terms of aid dollars, has been relatively strong. The Friends of Yemen meeting in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia last month raised $4 billion. The bulk of the money came from Saudi Arabia, although 40 other countries attended the meetings, providing financial support for essential food aid.
On June 20, USAID announced plans to increase aid to Yemen by $52 million, bringing the yearly total to $175 million. Additionally, the European Union has pledged an additional $6 million to help combat food insecurity in Yemen.
However, those familiar with international aid programs caution, saying that robust philanthropic donations must be coupled with a feasible plan for the delivery of aid to populations in need.
Mark Tran, a reporter for the Guardian, wrote that UNICEF and other international aid organizations are planning to partner with local groups while relying less upon the central Yemeni government. By engaging Yemeni civil society, aid planners hope to train local organizations and volunteers in effective malnutrition eradication methods.
Tran wrote, “Cappelaere said Unicef and its partners want to tackle malnutrition by starting at the community level, whereas in the past it would be to work through government structures. One plan is to train the existing 6,000 volunteers working on immunisation programmes to also give advice on nutrition, with the goal of eventually having 20,000 volunteers.”