Yemen, EU sign project to curb population growth

The European Union will fund a campaign in Yemen raising awareness of the country's burgeoning population and ways to keep birth rates in check, the official Al Thawra newspaper said on July 21.

"According to an agreement the European Union will provide Yemen with about 2 million US dollars for the three-year project, which seeks to increase media coverage of population issues," it said.

Official figures put Yemen's population at about 16.7 million with an annual growth of about 3.8 percent.

The deal was signed on July 20, the newspaper said.