A Yemeni strategy to alleviate poverty

Within the context of long- and intermediate plans and in collaboration with the UN Development Program. Yemen has prepared a strategy to alleviate poverty.

The Yemeni minister of planning and development Ahmad Muhammad Soufan said that the second fifth five year plan 2001- 2005 aims at reducing poverty rate concerning nutrition from 27 to 18%, reducing unemployment from 35 to 25 % and increasing the volume of social funds expenditures from USD 200 million to USD 600 million.

The Yemeni economic weekly " al-Mada " ( the Horizon) noted that population growth in Yemen is 3.5% and it is planned to reduce it to 3.3% in the year 2005 and that share per capita of the GNP is USD 370. However, spending of health, and education sectors is 27% of the state's general budget.