SANA’A — Political instability and economic growth are connected. The strong implications that politics can have for a country’s GDP and consumption help explain why politically unstable regions of the world tend to suffer from higher rates of poverty. Nowhere is this more apparent than countries in the midst of war and worsening poverty.
Several countries in the Middle East strongly demonstrate the negative effects that political corruption or violence may have on the prosperity of the people. However, few countries in the region exhibit the connection between political and economic suffering as prominently as Yemen.
Yemen is no stranger to political instability; with history stretching back several millennia, modern-day Yemen has dealt with countless instances of corruption, incompetent governance and war. Unfortunately, recent decades were not entirely different.
Despite the reunification of the independent states of North and South Yemen in 1990, Yemen has faced significant obstacles. In the early 2000s, Al Qaeda took hold and further destabilized the country. The overall volatility of Yemen made fighting the country’s considerable poverty a secondary task.
Conditions were exacerbated when the conflict between the incumbent government and the Houthi rebels exploded into civil war in 2014. In addition to the already significant challenges facing the Yemeni people, the country found itself trapped in a state of war and worsening poverty.
Even before the start of the civil war, Yemen was considered one of the Middle East’s poorest countries. Three years into the civil war, economic growth only regressed. From 1990 to 2014, Yemen’s GDP grew at an encouraging rate, peaking at $43 billion in 2014; in 2016, Yemen’s GDP was a paltry $27 billion.
Yemen’s situation has gone from bad to worse. It was clear that international organizations such as the World Bank and U.N. needed to intervene for the sake of the Yemeni people.
In 2015, the World Bank actually suspended operations in Yemen out of concerns regarding safety and security. Later that year, the World Bank decided against their previous decision because of the country’s catastrophic situation.
Recognizing the horrific health consequences of war and worsening poverty, the World Bank sponsored the Schistosomiasis Control Project and the Health and Population Project. The two projects, enacted by the World Health Organization (WHO) and United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), provide medical supplies and related necessities to the Yemeni people.
The WHO and U.N. also implemented the World Bank’s Emergency Health and Nutrition Project, which assists Yemeni health facilities and serves millions on the ground. The World Bank approved a $200 million grant to this program, largely to fight against the proliferation of disease and malnutrition during the war.
In addition, the World Bank created a formal financial plan, known as a Country Engagement Note (CEN) for 2017-2018 to provide support to families and communities adversely affected by the conflict. The World Bank’s CEN also plans for the country’s post-war recovery and reconstruction, with assistance from the U.N.
Furthermore, the World Bank expanded the funding for their Emergency Crisis Response Project by $250 million. The program is managed by the U.N. Development Programme and focuses on providing income opportunities for Yemen’s most vulnerable people.
So far, the World Bank’s projects have significantly helped the Yemeni people. Almost 2 million people, mostly children, received critical vaccinations and drugs. Roughly 15 thousand people have jobs and over four thousand benefit from monetary and nutrition assistance. Without the World Bank-backed projects, the debilitating effects of poverty and war in Yemen would be almost entirely unchecked.
Regardless, the situation in Yemen is far from under control. War and worsening poverty, as well as the political instability that caused them, still harm the country’s overall development and there is no clear indication of when the chaos will subside.
However, although the end of the war is not yet clearly in sight, and although there is no certain answer for preventing future political and economic problems, there is no doubt that the World Bank’s many programs help.
While the World Bank may not have the solution for lasting peace in Yemen, helping people survive despite the seemingly insurmountable challenges of poverty counts for something real. The World Bank’s actions in Yemen demonstrate that although war and worsening poverty may not have a straightforward solution, that should not prevent us from doing what we can to help.
– Isidro Rafael Santa Maria
Photo: Flickr