Speeches Shim
Last updated: April 25, 2022
On a typical day, the Al Wahda Factory in Ta’izz is abuzz with activity and the sounds of cutting and sewing machines. Catering to the popular demand for leather clothing and products in Yemen, Al Wahda exemplifies the dynamism and growth potential of the country’s small and medium-sized enterprises. Founded in 2007, Al Wahda grew to employ 25 full-time workers by 2020 and was generating more than $300,000 in annual sales. Now, with USAID support, the company is poised to expand further still and add 15 new employees by August 2021.
For 27 years, fisherman Fikri Bahriemah set sail each day hoping for a good catch. It was a precarious livelihood, and like his fellow fisherman living along the shores of Shabwah Governorate in southeastern Yemen, Bahriemah struggled to support his family.
Coffee lovers around the world can appreciate the smell of freshly ground and roasted coffee, along with the pleasure of the first sip of dark, warm brew. For expert tasters, however, the first mouthful of coffee is a far more complex experience. Known as “cuppers,” professional tasters will carefully slurp a spoonful of coffee and run it across the tongue to identify the distinctive notes of flavor and body, using terms such as “full-bodied,” “fruity,” or “exotic undertones.” Among international buyers, their opinion can make or break a coffee’s reputation—relegating it to the ranks of an ordinary brand or elevating it to the coveted top position of a highly prized, and priced, gourmet variety.
The maternal mortality rate in Yemen is among the highest in the region. Due to the lack of services, 1.2 million pregnant and lactating women suffer from either moderate or severe malnutrition. Moreover, women are often responsible for fetching water every day from the nearest water sources. Even pregnant women transport water from far places, carrying heavy cans for long distances under the sun’s heat, which risks their babies’ and their own lives.
For Doaa Omar Al-Habashi, the end of September 2020 was marked by great excitement. As a newly minted graduate from Hadramawt University for Sciences and Technology, she celebrated with pride the achievement of her completed bachelor’s degree in English Translation and Literature. However, mixed with the elation was an equal measure of apprehension. “I worried my efforts would prove to be in vain,” she explains. “I had only a blurred vision of where to go next to look for a job or gain more skills. I wondered if I would end up just adding to the ranks of the unemployed.”
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