War, a high
population growth rate, high unemployment, declining water resources, and
severe food scarcity is leading Yemen to a bleak future for which is already the
poorest country in the Middle East.
The country
is infested by military activity that is harming its infrastructure and the
access to all type of goods. For example, the Port of al-Hudaydah, which
handles 60% of Yemen’s commercial traffic, was damaged in August 2015, its four
cranes were destroyed and several warehouses were damaged, and it was operating
at only half of its capacity.
The country
has currently over 27 million inhabitants, 0.8 million are born each year, and
the population is forecasted to reach about 33 million in 2025. Analysts have pointed
out that at any given time almost 1 in 5 women is pregnant and nearly half of
the population is under 15 years old.
Unemployment
was of about 17-18% high.
Groundwater
levels have been falling and Sanaa could be the first capital city in the world
to run dry.
Scarce food
resources caused a third of Yemenis facing chronic hunger even before the
unrest. That number is growing quickly.
The not
encouraging economic situation has to overcome war and the hindrance of
tribalism. These seem to be the main impediments to the betterment of the
Yemenite society, but they do not seem easy to toss away, at least in the near
future.
