[08/07/2021 02:02]

RIYADH - SABA
Yemen's government headed by Prime Minister Maeen Abdulmalik held a high-level talks with the World Bank's Vice President for Middle East and North Africa Ferid Belhaj, the Executive Director to the World Bank Group (WBG​) Merza Hussein and the IFC's Vice President for the Middle East and Africa Sérgio Pimenta on Wednesday.

During the talks, they reviewed the existing areas of cooperation between the Yemeni government on the one hand and the WB and the IFC on the other.

Talks included future plans in implementing projects in light of the current priorities, in a way that helps the Yemeni government to carry out its duties and obligations in alleviate the humanitarian crisis.

The discussions also went over the mechanisms and plans for establishing the multi-donor trust fund, and the dependable role in supporting stability in Yemen, by financing basic projects in the transport, electricity and other vital sectors, in addition to providing the necessary support to the government in reform policies and activating the function of state institutions, foremost of which are the Central Bank of Yemen and Aden oil refineries among others.

They also discussed what the International Finance Corporation can do in providing a package of commercial facilities, which contributes to providing hard currency for importing food and basic foodstuffs, reducing the value of insurance for shipping to Yemeni ports, and helping to provide the appropriate environment for the growth of the private sector in a number of vital sectors, including telecommunications. fish and others.

At the beginning of the talks, the Prime Minister thanked the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation for their support to Yemen, and that they are essential partners in the humanitarian, economic, developmental and institution-building aspects, and the importance of searching for new windows for partnership in the areas of development, noting the joint work that has been accomplished during the past period and the necessity of continuing this Cooperation in order to alleviate the economic crisis that Yemen is going through, most notably the inflation of prices of goods and services and the depreciation of the national currency, which was exacerbated by the Houthi financial misuses.

The Prime Minister stressed the importance of thinking about the economic aspect as a basic entry point to address the catastrophic humanitarian crisis in Yemen.. He pointed out that all previous interventions in Yemen by donors and the United Nations were temporary and limited, and the economic issue was not given priority despite its importance.

He said that "we have to realize that the sustainability of interventions is through state institutions, and we are open to partnership with the World Bank and international institutions, in planning and determining priorities of work."

He said, "We want to benefit and rely on the technical and legal experiences of the World Bank in building and reforming state institutions and vital sectors. We also want all Yemenis, without exception, to benefit from these interventions."

The Prime Minister briefed the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation on the decisions that the government intends to take to address the economic deterioration, maintain the price of the national currency and stop its devaluation, and the international support required in this aspect, including addressing the exhaustion that the power sector causes to the state’s finances.

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