IMF Expects Yemen to Achieve 2% Economic Growth

The IMF warned that humanitarian assistance continues to fall short of Yemen’s needs. (Photo: EPA)
The IMF warned that humanitarian assistance continues to fall short of Yemen’s needs. (Photo: EPA)
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IMF Expects Yemen to Achieve 2% Economic Growth

The IMF warned that humanitarian assistance continues to fall short of Yemen’s needs. (Photo: EPA)
The IMF warned that humanitarian assistance continues to fall short of Yemen’s needs. (Photo: EPA)

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission expected that Yemen would achieve a modest economic growth of about two percent this year and 3.2 percent in 2023.

However, the Fund called for more reforms, especially with regard to the customs dollar rate, support for the electricity sector, transparency in financial management, and accountability in the use of scarce financial resources.

The announcement came at the end of a visit by an IMF team, headed by Brett Rayner, to Jordan, that met with representatives of the Yemeni government, from Sept. 27 to Oct. 6.

Discussions covered recent economic developments in Yemen, the outlook, and progress on key reforms, a statement read.

“Higher global commodity prices have compounded inflationary pressures and exacerbated food insecurity. Annual inflation in August was estimated at around 45 percent, with food inflation at around 58 percent. Yemen has also faced a decline in wheat import volumes and has been unable to fully substitute for imports from Russia and Ukraine, which constituted around 40 percent of Yemen’s wheat,” the statement quoted Rayner as saying.

The IMF warned that humanitarian assistance continued to fall short of Yemen’s needs, saying: “As a result, food insecurity is on the rise with the UN projecting the number of people in need of humanitarian assistance to reach 23.4 million by end-2022, with 19 million facing acute food insecurity.”

On the other hand, the IMF pointed to “some encouraging developments” that have paved the way to greater macroeconomic stability.

“In particular, the truce has supported a period of relative calm, including reduced conflict casualties and greater exchange rate stability,” the statement underlined.

It continued: “Looking ahead, a more stable exchange rate and the recent decline in global food prices are expected to translate into lower inflation towards the end of the year. Economic output is expected to broadly stabilize with modest economic growth of around 2 percent in 2022 and 3.2 percent in 2023, albeit with considerable uncertainty regarding the evolution of the conflict and availability of external financing.”



Egypt, Spain Reject US Plan to Displace Gazans

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (R) and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi hold a signed agreements following their meeting at Moncloa Palace in Madrid, Spain, 19 February 2025. (EPA)
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (R) and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi hold a signed agreements following their meeting at Moncloa Palace in Madrid, Spain, 19 February 2025. (EPA)
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Egypt, Spain Reject US Plan to Displace Gazans

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (R) and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi hold a signed agreements following their meeting at Moncloa Palace in Madrid, Spain, 19 February 2025. (EPA)
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (R) and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi hold a signed agreements following their meeting at Moncloa Palace in Madrid, Spain, 19 February 2025. (EPA)

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Wednesday rejected a controversial proposal by US President Donald Trump to displace Palestinians from the war-devastated Gaza Strip.  

The Arab League is scheduled to hold an extraordinary meeting in Cairo on March 4 in response to Trump's plan to take over Gaza and permanently move its Palestinian inhabitants elsewhere, including to Egypt and Jordan, and then redevelop the coastal territory into the "Riviera of the Middle East".  

Speaking in Madrid ahead of the gathering, Sisi called for the "international community's support and adoption of a plan to rebuild the Gaza Strip without displacing the Palestinian people -- I repeat, without displacing the Palestinian people -- from their land, which they cling to, and their homeland, which they do not agree to relinquish".

Sanchez, one of the staunchest defenders of the Palestinian cause within the European Union, agreed, saying "Gaza belongs to the Palestinians and is part of the future Palestinian state".

"Their expulsion would not only be immoral and contrary to international law and United Nations resolutions, but would also have a destabilizing effect," the Socialist premier added.  

The two leaders also signed a declaration upgrading Egypt-Spain relations to a "strategic partnership", as well as several memorandums of understanding in various fields including illegal migration and defense.  

Trump's plan sparked an outcry from Arab governments as well as from world leaders, and the United Nations warned against "ethnic cleansing" in the Palestinian territory.