Yemeni civil society

On January 23, the Houthi group (Ansar Allah) detained seven UN staff members working in Sana’a. In response, the UN halted the movement of all staff working in Houthi-controlled territories as Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the UN workers’ immediate release. But the incident is just the latest in a string of disappearances and detentions of UN, NGO, and civil…

This study examines the key barriers and opportunities regarding localizing humanitarian aid in Yemen. The findings reveal a significant gap between the international community’s intent to localize aid and the reality on the ground. Challenges include Yemen’s fragmented political landscape, weak governance, and a limited understanding of what localization entails. Further, the lack of sustained investment in local organizations, especially…

We reject any political process that ignores our call for justice, or that seeks to compromise our demands in exchange for so-called political stability. Sustainable and lasting peace can only be achieved by welcoming reconciliation through justice. The Yemen Declaration for Justice and Reconciliation (2023) The overwhelming majority of Yemenis today are victims of an almost decade-long war. More than…

Since 2021, Yemenis have become more strident in their calls for new and better ways of providing aid. Yemeni experts have warned that prolonged cycles of short-term humanitarian aid can entrench dependence and have called for a transition toward development approaches that could set the foundation for a sustainable post-conflict economy. Despite vastly different interpretations and positions over what development…

In conflict zones, peacebuilding processes are often driven by the binary framing of victim and perpetrator. Peacebuilding within such a narrative is mainly about securing truces like those being strung together in Yemen today, ending an ongoing militarized war or signing a peace agreement. In the context of Yemen, there is also a tendency by the international community to localize and reduce the conflict, emphasizing it solely as a civil war while disregarding the roles of many countries involved that…

This policy brief addresses the rise of local CSOs in Marib governorate between 2015 and 2020, focusing on the impact of the war on their internal and external working environment and on their activities and performance, including the most important changes civil society has undergone. It presents the views of various key stakeholders in Marib’s civil society and the challenges they faced during that period. It also makes recommendations to improve the work of CSOs and their access to cooperation…