The Yemeni government is betting that rebuilding the transport sector can help revive an economy battered by more than a decade of war that has left airports, ports and roads badly damaged.
Yemeni Transport Minister Mohsen al-Amri told Asharq Al-Awsat that rebuilding the sector “requires resources, capabilities, investments and effective partnerships with donors, international institutions and the private sector.”
Al-Amri said the ministry was working under “a phased vision” to expand airport capacity and reconnect Yemeni governorates with the region and the wider world. It is also seeking to develop two ports on the Arabian Sea “to improve logistics services, support maritime trade and connect coastal areas to regional and international trade routes,” he said.
The Houthi group, meanwhile, has limited itself to estimating the sector’s losses without acknowledging responsibility.
Al-Amri said the damage since the start of the war had been extensive across air, sea and land transport.
“We cannot determine any figures in this regard at the present time, and there is no doubt that rebuilding Yemen’s transport sector requires resources, capabilities and investments with the private sector,” he said.
The minister praised Saudi Arabia’s continued support across several fields, including transport, saying its impact was reflected in improved services.
The Houthi group issued a report several days ago, presented at an event attended by some of its leaders, putting cumulative war damage and losses across transport sectors at $23.2 billion.
It claimed it could restore the operational readiness of damaged facilities in areas under its control within weeks, but did not set out a strategy.
Reconnecting Yemen
Recent moves by Yemen’s Transport Ministry point to a broader government push to rehabilitate airports and ports and increase the capacity of air and sea gateways. The government says the plan aims to turn Yemen into a hub linking international trade corridors, drawing on its strategic location.
Al-Amri said the ministry was pursuing a phased plan to turn several local airports into international airports, including Al-Ghaydah in the eastern governorate of Al-Mahra, Ataq in the central governorate of Shabwa and Mokha in the southwestern governorate of Taiz.
The plan also includes upgrading Seiyun airport in the east and Socotra airport in the south, with the aim of “linking Yemeni governorates to the regional and international spheres.”
The government is also seeking to revive maritime transport through new port projects, led by Qarma port on Socotra island in the Indian Ocean and Brom port in the eastern governorate of Hadramout.
Al-Amri described the two ports as “strategic projects” that would ease pressure on main ports, improve logistics, stimulate maritime trade and connect coastal areas to regional and international trade routes.
He said the ministry sets transport project priorities based on population density, economic importance, development and service impact, and the ability to facilitate the movement of people, trade and aid. Project readiness and financing prospects are also considered, he said, along with the goal of balancing development among governorates and directing resources by priority.
In recent weeks, the Transport Ministry has stepped up foreign outreach through talks and cooperation agreements with the European Union, the International Civil Aviation Organization, Morocco and Egypt. The aim is to secure technical and professional support to develop airports and ports, train personnel and modernize air navigation systems.
Al-Amri said the government does not see transport development as a services project alone, but as part of a wider plan to restore state institutions and strengthen their economic role.
Houthi denial
The Yemeni government expects its plans to help move Yemen from a country exhausted by war into a hub linking international trade corridors, using its position on the Red Sea, the Gulf of Aden and the Arabian Sea. It also expects the plans to cut transport and insurance costs, stimulate trade, attract private investment and support economic recovery.
By contrast, the Houthi group’s claims and loss estimates expose the depth of deterioration in one of the most vital sectors under its control, whether from its use of facilities and installations as military bases and barracks, or from attacks linked to escalation in the Red Sea and against Israel.
According to the group’s figures, losses at the ports of Hodeidah, Al-Salif and Ras Isa on Yemen’s western coast exceeded $8.7 billion. Airport losses topped $2 billion, with major airports knocked out of service, Sanaa International Airport damaged, thousands of kilometers of roads destroyed and more than 100 bridges wrecked.
The group has avoided acknowledging responsibility for destroying these facilities and damaging the sector, particularly after it detained four Yemenia Airways aircraft at Sanaa airport. The planes were destroyed by Israeli airstrikes last May in response to Houthi missile attacks.
The gap between government development plans and Houthi loss figures shows that transport has become one of the central arenas for rebuilding the Yemeni state. Reopening airports and ports is not just about improving services. It is about restoring key tools of economic sovereignty, easing the movement of trade and aid, and reconnecting Yemen’s regions with one another and with regional and international markets.
