Saudi Engineers Conduct Needs Assessment in 4 Yemeni Governorates: Al-Jawf, Hadhramaut, Hajjah and Marib
12 Dec
RIYADH | 25 March 2019 – On Monday, engineers from the Saudi Development and Reconstruction Program for Yemen (SDRPY) concluded a week-long field study in four Yemeni provinces: Al-Jawf, Hadhramaut, Marib and Hajjah. The aim of the fact-finding mission was to assess the development needs of Yemeni communities to inform future programming. The engineers worked closely with Yemeni officials on the ground to jointly establish development priorities. In the past 8 months, Saudi healthcare and transportation sector initiatives have been implemented in all four of these provinces.
In Hajjah Governorate, SDRPY engineers assessed the capacity of local roads and coast guard facilities in Midi district. The Yemeni government has been an important ally in strengthening maritime security and combating the smuggling of both licit and illicit goods, including arms. The needs assessments in Hajjah were not limited to the mainland but extended to the adjoining Red Sea islands of Fasht and Buklan, where education, electricity and water needs were examined. On Fasht, a plan to rehabilitate and re-equip the health center with modern medical devices was outlined with local authorities. Since its founding in 1996, the Kingdom has fully funded the operations of the Saudi hospital in Hajjah, even throughout the period of Houthi militia rule from 2014 onward.
In Al-Jawf Governorate, SDRPY engineers and a body of local officials, under Deputy Governor Sinan Al-Iraqi, established development priorities in the agriculture, education, electricity and health sectors. The needs assessment was holistic in nature: while examining agricultural potential and suitable types of seed and fertilizer, the team also examined the potential for digging new wells, restoring old wells, improving water distribution networks and providing public lighting along main roads in the capital Al-Hazm and the Al-Rayyan Highway. A preliminary study of the requirements for rehabilitating provincial health centers was also conducted. In November 2018, SDRPY completed the re-equipment and renovation of Al-Jawf General Hospital in Al-Hazm, which serves some 18,000 patients per month.
In Marib Governorate, where a SDRPY project to build a new international airport is now fully under way, SDRPY engineers conferred with Governor Sultan Al-Arada on development needs and toured both Marib and Kara General Hospitals, inspecting their transformation from local to regional health centers. Since the Iran-backed Houthi takeover of much of western Yemen in 2014, Marib’s population has increased from a mere 40,000 to 1.5 million people. This influx of primarily refugees and IDPs has doubled the hospital’s caseload several times over.
“The health sector is vital to our province, and even more important now,” said Gov. Al-Arada. “Marib’s residents welcome plans for new projects to improve healthcare, as we do for all sectors fundamental to a dignified standard of living.”
In Hadhramaut Governorate, SDRPY engineers, resident expert teams and local authorities in the Wadi Hadhramaut valley, including a deputy governor, held extensive discussions on electricity, health, roads, water, agriculture and education at Seiyun University and a local technical institute. In August 2018, SDRPY implemented a health sector project to supply Seiyun General Hospital with state-of-the-art medical equipment, raising the standard of services to the level currently available in the Kingdom.
“All of the projects are carried out in consultation with local authorities,” said Mohammed bin Saeed Al Jaber, SDRPY Supervisor and Saudi Ambassador to Yemen. “The joint nature of this needs assessment provides good evidence of that.”