Yemeni Economic challenges
Comment by Abdelwahab Alksebi

The Yemeni economy suffers many ills, despite an abundance of natural resources and a young and energetic labour force. As Yemen goes through an ambitious political process, policy makers and the private sector will have to combine forces to work towards a market economy, combat corruption, and improve the legal and regulatory environment. This will allow the youth to participate in the economy and unleash their entrepreneurial spirit to establish new businesses, create jobs, and attain the dignity they strive for and deserve. Elections are crucially important.

However, we should not ignore governance between elections and make sure that the voices of the citizens are heard after the elections through the different associations and civil society organisations that represent all Yemenis, including its youth.
Qat is a scourge that is one of the main impediments to development in Yemen. It is the main reason for the depletion of Yemen’s scarce water resources, undermines workforce productivity, and encourages corruption to endemic proportions. Yemen is in dire need of a national plan to fight Qat and that will only start with political will at the highest levels.

AboutAbdelwahab Alksebi:

Abdulwahab Alkebsi is Regional Director for Middle East and Africa programs at the Center for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), one of the four core institutes of the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and a non-profit affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. In his role at CIPE, Alkebsi supervises a 30-member staff in Washington, Egypt, Iraq, Nigeria, and Ethiopia, and manages over 40 democracy and market-reform projects in more than 20 countries.

Read more: https://middleeast-business.com/yemen-has-some-riches-but-why-does-it-remain-one-of-the-poorest-countries-in-the-middle-east/
– See more at: Rich but Poor: Yemen a country of contradictions