education

Main Publications December 11, 2025 03:03 MIN Energy Transition in Yemen: A Path to Justice and Sustainable Development By Abeer Al-Eryani, and Musaed Aklan Yemen’s energy sector is currently facing a severe crisis. For millions of Yemenis, accessing reliable electricity is a daily struggle, characterized by prolonged blackouts, limited fuel supplies, and deteriorating infrastructure, which in turn exacerbate the country's humanitarian conditions. This policy brief underscores the importance of a just and conflict-sensitive energy transition in Yemen, addressing the interconnected challenges of conflict, economic instability, and energy poverty. It emphasizes the urgent need for an energy transition that enhances energy access, promotes decarbonization, and supports peacebuilding and socioeconomic recovery. The brief outlines the current energy landscape in Yemen, identifies critical policy gaps, and highlights both top-down and grassroots opportunities for sustainable energy development. It acknowledges the significant challenges in the energy sector, including its… Continue reading Yemen Review section October 28, 2025 05:36 MIN July-September 2025 A Dying Cause: The Lost Gains of the Muhammasheen By Jawhar Mokhtar Ahmed Historically relegated to the bottom of Yemen’s social hierarchy, the muhammasheen (marginalized ones) are a minority group that has endured decades of systematic marginalization and exclusion. The surge of activity by international non-governmental organizations (INGOs) following Yemen’s 1990 unification brought greater attention to their struggle, leading to meaningful advocacy efforts from both local and international organizations and creating momentum for the community. But the outbreak of war in 2015 and the ensuing protracted conflict threaten to undermine these hard-won gains. As international support for Yemen recedes, the plight of the muhammasheen is once again being relegated to the margins, leaving the community increasingly vulnerable. Although there are no officially recognized statistics, UN reports and other studies estimate the population of… Continue reading Main Publications August 4, 2025 08:01 MIN Yemen International Forum 2025 Report The third Yemen International Forum (YIF III) took place in Amman from February 16 - 18, 2025, gathering more than 300 participants to discuss peace prospects and stability in Yemen. Since the outbreak of the war on Gaza in October 2023, Yemen has been tested in myriad ways. Attacks on the Red Sea and the rising prominence of the Houthis within the “Axis of Resistance” have thrust Yemen into regional conflict, undermining hope for an end to its decade-long war. Since the last YIF held in the Hague in June 2023, where discussions centered on cautious optimism for a potential peace settlement, Yemen has undertaken a dramatic U-turn. Peace efforts have taken a backseat while international attention has increasingly turned… Continue reading Yemen Review section April 21, 2025 06:12 MIN January-March 2025 Targeting the Houthi Leadership is Not a Game-Changer By Eleonora Ardemagni The US administration’s recent airstrikes against the Houthis in Yemen mark a strategic shift, as Washington is now explicitly targeting the Houthi leadership in its efforts to restore freedom of navigation in the Red Sea. While the assassination of Houthi leaders would no doubt be a blow to the group, it’s unclear whether the tactic would threaten its survival, as the group has displayed great adaptability during past domestic and regional crises. US President Donald Trump has emphasized that the attacks on Houthi-held areas of Yemen hit “terrorists’ bases, leaders, and missile defenses.” National Security Advisor Michael Waltz claimed that early rounds of strikes had “taken out key Houthi leadership, including their head missileer,” although without providing any evidence. The… Continue reading Analysis April 21, 2025 08:55 MIN January-March 2025 Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Yemeni Women in Diplomacy By Rim Mugahed, Hana’a Abdurabu, and Essa Al-Qadasy “Our main challenge as women in Yemen is simply the fact that we are women,” - Sahar Ghanem, Yemeni Ambassador to the Netherlands. “How can women have a strong presence [in diplomacy] when we aren’t in decision-making positions at all?” - Female Yemeni diplomat. The underrepresentation of women in Yemen’s political and public sphere existed before the war and has only worsened due to the ongoing conflict over the past decade. The Yemeni government formed as part of the Riyadh Agreement in 2020 did not include female ministers, marking the first time women had been entirely excluded from a cabinet in nearly two decades. In a context of escalating tension and polarization, this marginalization extends to all other structures, where… Continue reading Publications February 27, 2025 18:32 MIN Recovering from Attacks on Education in Yemen By Alexander Kochenburger Education is often one of the greatest casualties of war. In Yemen, this reality is borne out by the thousands of damaged and destroyed schools, tens of thousands of child soldiers, hundreds of thousands of teachers working without regular pay, and millions of students out of school. Mere numbers, however, are not sufficient to encapsulate the true toll. A generation of Yemenis have had their right to education and hope for a better future stripped away by airstrikes and fighting, by landmines and armed groups in and around their schools, and by beleaguered teachers presiding the best they can in over-crowded classrooms. This policy brief examines the effects of Yemen’s armed conflict on the country’s education system, focusing in particular… Continue reading Analysis February 4, 2025 09:13 MIN October-December 2024 A Year in Patriarchy: Key Setbacks in Yemeni Women’s Rights in 2024 By Bilqees Al-Lahbi, Rim Mugahed, and Lara Uhlenhaut Away from the Red Sea crisis that dominated the headlines of 2024, the space for female political and social actors in Yemen has continued to shrink, largely unchecked. Today, the distinction between the repression in areas controlled by the Houthis and those under the internationally recognized government is becoming increasingly blurred. In Houthi-controlled areas, a campaign of terrifying arrests of civil society actors that started last June and continues to date has seen various female activists and peace workers targeted, some of whom are languishing in prisons incommunicado under dire conditions. In areas under government control, polarization and conflict among the various political factions are primarily to blame for undermining women’s rights. Political partisanship and a policy of divide and… Continue reading Publications January 22, 2025 26:32 MIN Forgotten Victims of Yemen’s War: The Plight of the Muhammashat By Mohammed al-Harbi Members of the muhammasheen community remain among the most vulnerable victims of systemic injustice and suffering in Yemen, a situation made worse by the war. Ostracized and disparaged, the community’s women and girls (muhammashat) are particularly vulnerable. The nature of their work, which commonly entails begging, street-sweeping, and vending, brings them into public spaces, putting them at risk of exploitation, including sexual and gender-based violence. As the upheaval of war in Yemen disrupts law enforcement and customary norms, and many men from this community have either lost their jobs or joined the frontlines, reports of muhammashat experiencing harassment and sexual abuse are on the increase while perpetrators continue to act with impunity. Based on interviews with local activists, researchers, lawyers,… Continue reading Main Publications January 6, 2025 31:12 MIN Mahrah University: Paving the Way for Workforce Transformation By Tawfeek Al-Ganad, and Lara Uhlenhaut For decades, Yemen’s higher education system has been characterized by a persistent mismatch between graduates’ skills and the changing requirements of the market. The last labor force survey carried out in 2014 showed that less than one-third of Yemen’s labor force had secondary or tertiary education, and a qualification mismatch was found among some 83 percent of the employed population. Yemen’s struggle to produce a skilled workforce can be attributed to many factors, including inflexible curriculums, outdated teaching methods, failure to adapt to technological advancements, and a lack of strategic vision for admissions and curriculum development. Undoubtedly, the historical absence of a unified and coordinated vision for higher education has been exacerbated by a decade-long war and its detrimental impact… Continue reading Main Publications October 25, 2024 01:50 MIN Localizing Aid and Development in Yemen By Dr. Nadia Al-Sakkaf 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 those in rural areas or led by women, has hampered efforts to empower Yemeni actors. Internal issues within Yemeni civil society, such as monopolies over donor partnerships, also exacerbate the problem. These issues leave international entities struggling to find effective Yemeni partners. At the same time, Yemeni local communities, civil society, and the private sector are desperate for genuine leadership.… Continue reading Yemen Review section October 16, 2024 14:25 MIN Quarterly: July-September 2024 Politics and Diplomacy — The Yemen Review, Quarterly: July-September 2024 By Casey Coombs The Houthi Security and Intelligence Service has continued airing forced confessions by former employees of the US embassy in Sana’a, making increasingly outlandish claims of decades-long US spy operations in the country. The latest episodes, aired June 29, July 14, August 17, and September 1-2, focused on purported efforts to influence Yemeni culture, society, politics, and the education sector. Previous segments detailed alleged efforts to influence Yemen’s economy and agricultural sector. Regarding allegations of cultural interference, the Yemeni detainees (referred to as spies in the videos) discussed how the embassy’s cultural and media attachés worked in coordination with the CIA. English language courses offered by institutes such as the Yemen American Language Institute (YALI) and America-Mideast Educational and Training Services… Continue reading Analysis October 16, 2024 07:06 MIN Quarterly: July-September 2024 Houthi Authorities Undermine Judicial Independence with Major Reforms By Mohammed Al-Shuwaiter In a new assault on the judiciary, the Houthi-controlled House of Representatives approved several amendments to the 1991 law on judicial power in mid-September 2024. This is not the first infringement on judicial independence since the Houthi group (Ansar Allah) staged a coup, taking control of Sana’a in 2014. They are systematically tightening their grip over the judiciary along racial and sectarian lines. The Houthis deliberately changed the legal structure of the judiciary and introduced what they called a “justice system” – a special committee tasked with overseeing the functions of the Supreme Judicial Council (SJC). The committee is headed by Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, a member of the Houthi Supreme Political Council. They also created unofficial posts of “supervisor” (mushrif)… Continue reading