Chapter
4:
Context
and
contextual
changes
Chapter
4.
Context
and
contextual
changes
Key
message:
Yemen
is
a
fragile
State
that
is
experiencing
both
violent
and
non-‐violent
conflict.
It
has
recently
emerged
after
the
33-‐year
rule
by
former
President
Ali
Abdullah
Saleh.
President
Saleh
created
a
complex
system
of
nepotism
and
patronage
in
which
democratic
institutions
could
not
properly
enforce
checks
and
balances.
These
institutions
were
influenced
by
elites
that
possessed
power
over
them
due
to
their
proximity
to
the
regime.
The
system
and
its
related
challenges
have
persisted
through
the
current
transitional
period.
Water
management
in
general
has
benefitted
Yemeni
elites
to
the
detriment
of
society
at
large,
while
the
lack
of
accountability
has
led
to
the
unsustainable
exploitation
of
water.
All
of
this
has
taken
place
against
a
background
of
widespread
poverty
and
a
lack
of
availability
of
water.
Although
there
has
been
a
steady
improvement
in
some
socio-‐economic
indicators
during
the
past
two
decades,
the
progress
in
other
important
indicators
(in
particular
infant
and
child
mortality,
food
security,
and
unemployment)
has
been
inconsistent.
Some
of
the
latter
have
likely
contributed
to
the
2011
revolution
and
all
of
the
latter
were
disrupted
by
the
2011
revolution.
Socio-‐economic
factors,
compounded
by
physical
conditions
and
changes,
render
Yemen
vulnerable
to
the
impacts
of
climate
change
and
prone
to
conflicts
between
water
users.
Water-‐
related
challenges
(both
in
quantity
and
quality)
linger
and
threaten
to
undermine
any
socio-‐
economic
development
made
as
well
as
to
prevent
future
development.
UNDESA
(2011)
mentioned
two
reports
from
2003
and
2010
by
the
Yemeni
Ministry
of
Planning
and
International
Cooperation,
which
concluded
that
Yemen
was
off-‐track
with
respect
to
meeting
the
Millennium
Development
Goals.
The
largest
water
user,
the
agricultural
sector,
with
qat
being
an
important
crop
in
terms
of
monetary
values
and
water
consumption,
uses
a
high
proportion
of
the
limited
rain-‐,
ground-‐,
and
(spate)
flood
water
available
and
is
highly
inefficient.
The
Yemeni
government
is
facing
major
obstacles
in
providing
safe
and
secure
water
to
larger
segments
of
society.
4.1
Political
dimension
4.1.1
General
background
on
Yemen
The
present
day
Republic
of
Yemen
was
formed
in
1990
with
the
unification
of
the
Yemen
Arab
Republic
(YAR)
and
the
People’s
Democratic
Republic
of
Yemen
(PDRY).
The
two
former
states
had
sharply
contrasting
political
systems,
with
policy-‐making
in
the
YAR
being
dominated
by
a
relatively
progressive
military
elite
who
worked
closely
with
civilian
technocrats,
tribal
leaders,
and
other
traditional
notables,
while
decision-‐making
in
the
PDRY
was
determined
solely
by
the
Yemen
Socialist
Party
(Al-‐Zwaini
2012).
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