Conflict in Yemen is taking over most of the country. The western world is advancing technology while Yemen is quickly falling behind. 82 percent of Yemen’s population needs humanitarian relief according to OCHA. How will Yemen keep up with the ever-growing technological world? The short answer, education. Yemen may never be as advanced as other countries but will it will be much easier to catch up if more efforts are placed on education. I truly think the future of Yemen relies on education. Roughly 2 million children do not have access to education per Relief Web. Since the escalation of conflict in 2015, humanitarian issues have only gotten worse.
United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs says, “More than 600 health facilities and 1,600 schools remained closed due to conflict-related damages.”
The future of Yemen is jeopardized if something does not change. A generation of children is lacking proper education which translates into little to no technological growth for the country. Public education is not the only affected sector either.
Al-Monitor reports nearly 200 private schools were closed during the 2015-2016 academic year.
To worsen the problem, aid to education has fallen 4% between 2013 and 2014 reported by the EFA Global Monitoring Report team.
There is good news. I think Yemen will benefit from other technological advances happening around the world.
For example, Google Loon could give people in rural parts of Yemen internet activity, which could open the door for Yemenis to apply technology at home.
A combination of technological advancements and emphasis in education for Yemenis could push the people toward progression. To build a brighter future, I think emphasis must be placed on education in Yemen.
-Haitham Alaini