Category Archives: Development

Gaza aid diary: Nowhere is safe

Arab-Israeli Conflict, Development, Palestine


Many Gazan families are in need of aid, but NGOs are struggling to reach them all [GALLO/GETTY]


Gaza aid diary: Nowhere is safe

by Salwa El Tibi in Gaza, Al-Jazeera, Tuesday, January 6, 2009

Yesterday was the first time in nine days that I was able to leave my house.

It is about a 10 minute journey from my home to the warehouse where the Save the Children food parcels are stored – but even as I drove the Save the Children car to work, I felt very afraid.

The noise from the bombings was so loud. There were very few cars on the roads and all of the shops were closed.

I saw three buildings that had been completely destroyed.

Dangerous work

At the warehouse I waited for our volunteer staff who help to distribute our food parcels across different parts of the Gaza Strip.

When we distribute the parcels we work in groups because it is so dangerous. Continue reading Gaza aid diary: Nowhere is safe →

Is the Hummer a Dinger?

Development, Iraq, Iraq War


Hummers are on display at Safa Selmen Menjed’s car dealership in an upscale Baghdad neighborhood. Photo by Ivan Watson, NPR

Test-Driving A Hummer H3, In Baghdad

by Ivan Watson, All Things Considered, December 4, 2008

Security. Militia. Badge. Apache. These are just a few of the English words Iraqis have adopted over the course of a military occupation that has lasted more than five years.

The most common catchphrase of all is Hummer. That’s the word Iraqs now use to describe just about anything military on wheels.

The Hummer has become one of the most ubiquitous symbols of the U.S. military presence in Iraq. Continue reading Is the Hummer a Dinger? →

Preserving Yemen’s Oral Heritage

Development, Music and Dance, Yemen

Dr. Jean Lambert: Adopting a National Strategy for Preserving Yemen’s Oral Heritage is Necessary

Sheba Center for Strategic Studies, November 2008

In his lecture delivered on Nov. 11, 2008, at the SCSS, French researcher and anthropologist Jean Lambert prompted the adoption of a national strategy for preserving Yemeni oral heritage and recording it in a well-studied methodology. He pointed out that Yemen’s cultural heritage contains a long and rich list of the narrated heritage which is falling into oblivion and facing extinction as a result of carelessness. He also pointed out that the areas rich with this culture are overlapped and interconnected, making it clear that singing is related to tales, stories and different walks of daily life such as poetry, dancing, and afternoon and evening entertaining sessions, and that all of these areas are fertile grounds for determining the features of any culture. Continue reading Preserving Yemen’s Oral Heritage →

Reproductive Health in Yemen

Development, Gender and Sexuality, Yemen


Despite the fact that fertility rate in Yemen is still one of the highest in the world, due to national efforts to promote family planning the projected population for Yemen in 2050 is now 58 million, 1.5 million less than expected in 2007. Yemen Times Photo by Amira Al-Sharif

Integrating culture into development strategy for reproductive health
By: Salma Ismail, Yemen Times, November 19, 2008

SANA’A, Nov. 19 — The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) last week released its annual State of the World Population Report for 2008 worldwide. The launching of the report in Yemen took place at Sana’a University and was attended by a number of representatives from the ministries of health and information, the National Population Council, as well as a number of academia and researchers.

Coinciding with the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the fifth report of the UNFPA, entitled Reaching Common Ground: Culture, Gender and Human Rights, focuses on cultural politics and development, and examines gender inequality and cultural differences with regards to reproductive health. It asserts the importance of cultural interaction with development strategies. Continue reading Reproductive Health in Yemen →

Yes, We Qat no Grapes

Agriculture, Development, Food and Drink, Qat (Catha edulis), Yemen

Yemeni farmers threaten to swap grapes for qat
Saddam Al-Ashmori, The Yemen Times, October 11, 2008

SANA’A, Oct 11 – Yemeni raisin producers have threatened to replace grapes with qat in their plantations after the loss they sustained this year as a result of not being able to sell all their produce.

Nasser Al-Khawlani, owner of a vineyard, said that the reason behind the low demand for local raisins this year was the presence of other cheap and attractive raisins in the markets, smuggled into Yemen from China.

He further said that, if the government didn’t take steps to prevent the smuggling of Chinese raisins into the country, farmers would replace grapes with qat in their lands. Continue reading Yes, We Qat no Grapes →

Literacy through Poetry

Anthropology/Sociology, Development, Yemen


Highland valley of al-Ahjur in central Yemen

The following report was recently published online by dvv international at the Institut für Zusammenarbeit des Deutschen Volkshochschul-Verbandes. It can be read in English, French or Spanish. The report describes an innovative World Bank-funded literacy project coordinated in Yemen by anthropologist Najwa Adra in 2002/2003.

Learning through Heritage, Literacy through Poetry
by Najwa Adra

I have just read Henrik Zipsane’s fascinating article on heritage learning (Zipsane 2007) in the latest issue of this journal. Zipsane describes several highly effective programs for lifelong learning provided by Jamtli Open Air Museum in Sweden. He argues that each person’s heritage includes “many coexisting histories” and that there is a need to provide diverse learning experiences. He suggests that one can learn “through cultural heritage” and not only about this heritage. In a part of the world far from Sweden, geographically and culturally, I too have found that heritage can be an effective learning tool “in the present” and not just an interesting artifact of the past.
The Project

In 2002-2003, I piloted a literacy project for adults in Yemen, on the SW corner of the Arabian Peninsula, in which learners created their own texts through their stories, poems and rhyming proverbs (Adra 2004). 2 Classes began with a discussion of a photograph of a scene familiar to the students or a topic of their choice. Students were encouraged to insert poetry and proverbs into their discussion, as is their custom when discussing issues of importance to them. With the teacher’s help, the class developed a short story based on the discussion. This story, which was written on large paper taped to the wall, along with poems and proverbs generated by the discussion, became the text through which students learned to recognize and read phrases, words and letters of the alphabet. In order to reinforce letter and word recognition, texts often focused on particular letters, words or syllables. Continue reading Literacy through Poetry →

Jangling Nerves in Yemen

Development, Osama Bin Laden, Terrorism Issue, Yemen


Damage is seen after a car bombing near the U.S. embassy in Yemen in this frame grab taken from Yemen TV on Sept. 17, 2008.

Jangling nerves

The Economist ,Oct 2nd 2008


Resurgent terrorist groups are just a symptom of broader troubles

THE wreckage of twin car bombs outside the American embassy in Yemen’s mountain capital, Sana’a, confirmed fears of a resurgent jihadist movement in a strategic country at the foot of the Red Sea, just across from chaotic Somalia. The attack in mid-September was the second on the American embassy in six months. A misfired mortar that hit a nearby girls’ school in March had prompted the evacuation of non-essential American staff.

Jittery diplomats had been back at their desks for less than a month when six suicide-bombers blew themselves up outside the embassy compound’s gate. American staff promptly packed their bags once again. Yemen’s interior ministry rounded up dozens of suspects but is said to be refusing to adopt some of the State Department’s suggested extra security measures. Continue reading Jangling Nerves in Yemen →

Water Scarcity in Yemen

Development, Environment, Yemen, YouTube Watch


Cistern collecting water in Hayfan

Tomorrow morning I will be giving a presentation at USAID in Washington on the development problems surrounding water resources in Yemen. As almost anyone involved in Yemen’s development knows, the country is rapidly running out of water. The handwriting has been on the wall for some time now, as the following quotes show:

“In general, the cultivators make good use of the water available. What is mostly needed is an increase in supply.” FAO Mission to Yemen, 1955

“Water is the limiting factor in most of the Yemen development projects.” Water Resources Sector Study in the YAR, USAID, 1977

“Water is a scarce resource in Yemen; there is not enough to satisfy present and potential demand.” Water Policy Initiatives for Yemen, CID for USAID, 1980

“… available information indicates that groundwater has been severely overdeveloped.” Irrigation Sector Study, World Bank, 1980

How did this happen? Continue reading Water Scarcity in Yemen →