UAE aid to Yemen reaches $4b

Four years of assistance covers power, transport, health, education and water supplies

The UAE’s total assistance to Yemen has reached $4.03 billion (Dh14.79 billion) — from April 2015 to September 2018. The aid was provided to meet the basic needs of more than 16.7 million Yemenis, including 10.1 million children and 3.4 million women.

During 2018, the UAE provided $1.24 billion, about $465 million of which was allocated to support the UN Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan, YHRP.

The humanitarian aid covered public programmes, power generation and supply, transport and storage, budget support, development of civil society, judicial and legal sectors, health, education, construction and social services in addition to water, health and public welfare.

Support to Yemen budget

Around $1.7 billion was given to support general programmes. The UAE provided assistance to support Yemen’s public budget, especially the payment of salaries of government employees to ensure all government bodies, particularly those related to health, education, and security, continue to provide services to a large number of people. Commodity assistance reached $1.03 billion.

A total of $467.3 million was provided to support the power generation and supply sector. The UAE has borne the operational costs of generating electricity, providing power supply services, rebuilding and maintaining power stations, as well as providing fuel for power plants and generators to enable the production of energy needed to operate hospitals, schools and public buildings across Yemen.

The health sector received $230.1 million, which contributed to reducing the shortage of health services, medicines, and medical supplies. The UAE has also built and re-equipped health infrastructure throughout Yemen.