Attachments
Contents:
- Beyond the Security Agenda by Michele Gonnelli, p. 4
- Yemen’s Wealth lies in its Labour Force by Charles Schmitz, p. 9
- The rise of Public Opinion in Yemen by Nadia Al-Sakkaf, p. 14
- Old and New Security Challenges by Gabriele Iacovino, p. 19
- People perceived [in]security Levels by Marie-Christine Heinze & Hafez Al-Bukari, p. 23
- Drone Dodging in the Yemen by Emanuele Sommario, p. 27
- Fuel for the National & Regional Economy by Giovanni Andriolo, p. 33
- Food Gap, Cropland and Prices Dynamics by Arwa A. Al-Badani, p. 38
- Migration and Displacement in Yemen by Emanuela Parisciani, p. 41
- Female Agency in Yemeni Transition by Sama’a Al-Hamdani, p. 46
- Youth beyond the Barrier of Fear by Majid Hussein Siraj, p. 50
- Media Landscape in Yemen [excerpts] by Andrea Sugar & Robert Powell, p. 53
- about the ITPCM: Next Events & Trainings, p. 57
Foreword
Dear friends of the ITPCM,
welcome, once again, to the traditional appointment with the newest issue of our Commentary, which this time is dedicated to the situation in Yemen. This country perfectly represents many of the contradictions and challenges the people of Yemen and the international community are facing nowadays.
Yemen has been attempting to start a democratic transition with the Government of National Unity under the leadership of President Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi, who came to power in an election held in February 2012 following the well- known street protests that led to the resignation of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The political transition in Yemen will be inspired by the guiding principles of the Implementation Mechanism Agreement, which has been brokered under the so called Gulf Initiative. The new instrument in this framework, which has been assigned a crucial role in preparing the ground for a new constitution and prepare elections, is the National Dialogue Conference. The NDC opened officially on 18 March 2013, and constitutes a historical opportunity for finding, through a dialogue which must involve all the relevant stakeholders, effective solutions to the political, social and economic problems that the country has been struggling with for years. The importance of this Conference, and the risks that there might be forces interested in preventing the NDC to reach a positive conclusion, has been highlighted by the UN Security Council. In a presidential statement, the Council stated that the Conference should be conducted in an “inclusive manner involving the full participation of all segments of Yemeni society, including representatives from the South and other regions, and the full and effective participation of youth and women”. Last week the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, Jamal Ben Omar, said that the situation in the country remains fragile and that many tasks lie ahead for the transition to succeed. “While progress has been made and the transition remains largely on track, it is clear that there has been active resistance to the transition”, Mr. Ben Omar commented, adding that “it is clear to whom these are attributable to”.
In this complex situation, the international community is requested to play an important role of watchdog to make sure that the Guiding principles of the implementation mechanism are respected and that the Conference is carried out in a participatory and peaceful manner.
Beyond the political transition, Yemen - one of the poorest countries in the Arab world - faces massive economic and social challenges. UN-OCHA, the United Nations office that coordinates humanitarian affairs, estimates that almost half the population does not have enough to eat. In some regions, every third child is malnourished. Officially, the unemployment rate is 35 percent, with the young generation the worst affected. There are also power blackouts that leave even the capi- tal Sana’a without electricity for hours.
The difficult issues the country has to face - from poverty and food insecurity to the risk of disaggregation, from fighting terrorism to dealing with significant migrations and IDPS, from incredible international pressure to the revitalization of the economy - are additional elements which contribute to make the whole situation almost explosive if not managed properly. In this issue of our International Commentary the various contributors share their knowledge to explain the existing situation, the political and legal implications of the possible solutions and to suggest a few possible ideas on how to overcome the most dramatic and urgent problems.
In addition, you will find in the last pages of the Commentary some basic info about the next Courses we will be running in the framework of the International Training Program for Conflict Management of the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna. Feel free to share the info with your colleagues/ friends who might be interested in attending any of these. As you will notice, we are undergoing a major effort to increase their number and scope, to continuously update their content and to offer courses dealing with new issues that are becoming more and more relevant.
We hope you will enjoy reading this issue. Warmest greetings to all of you and to your families,
Andrea de GUTTRY
Director, ITPCM
Pisa, April 3, 2013