Saudi Arabia Largest Donor to Humanitarian Effort in Yemen

Saudi Arabia has been Yemen's largest donor since the beginning of the war launched by the Houthi militia, with 30 percent of the total aid provided to the country, according to data issued by the Yemeni government and the United Nations.

The data showed that the development financing gap widened significantly due to the cumulative GDP losses totaling about $126 billion and essential recovery and reconstruction needs, estimated at between $20 and $25 billion, and include 12 sectors and 16 cities.

- Funds go to relief

The report, issued by the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation funded by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) country office on key priorities for recovery and reconstruction, estimated that the data is "not complete."

The report stressed that the situation "requires a comprehensive assessment of the damage" from late 2014 until now to reach more accurate estimates of recovery and reconstruction needs.

Since the beginning of the conflict, most of the funds sent to Yemen have been directed to humanitarian and relief aid as the number of people in need of assistance continues to increase.

According to the report, the number increased in the last two years from 7.20 million in 2021 to 18 million in 2022, 9.12 million of which are urgently needed, according to the Humanitarian Needs Overview.

- Saudi Arabia provided 30%

The report indicated that official development aid recorded an increase from about $3.1 billion in 2014 to $5.3 billion in 2017, coinciding with the intensification of war and the urgent growing need for humanitarian aid.

Humanitarian aid stabilized at about $7.2 billion in 2020, and the per capita share of development aid increased to $116 in 2017 before declining to $85.26 in 2020.

The report asserted that Saudi Arabia was at the forefront of donor countries with about 30 percent, followed by UAE with about 25 percent, then the US, the World Bank, and the UK.

It shows that the volume of total investment as a percentage of GDP averaged 1.14 percent between 2014 and 2020 and says that the highest contribution of the volume of total investments to GDP amounted to 19 percent in 2019.

According to the report, private investment also recorded an average of 2.11 percent of GDP compared to an average of three percent for public investment for the same period, given the limited state budget, investment expenditures, and war conditions.

- A decline in per capita

The report stated that at the beginning of the conflict, the donor funds were directed toward humanitarian relief to meet the emergencies and their repercussions on the population, who lost their homes and sources of income, forcing them to flee.

The report expected about 19 million people would suffer from acute food insecurity during the second half of this year, while about 538,000 children will suffer from acute malnutrition. It warned that they risk losing their lives, with over four million displaced persons.

According to the report, the humanitarian crisis in Yemen has become one of the worst crises in the world.

The data showed that the financial requirement is about $6.1 billion, but the pledges amounted to about $900 million, with a coverage of 3.56 percent.

Requirements for funding humanitarian needs continued to rise and amounted to $3.4 billion in 2022, but the percentage of donor pledges coverage amounted to only 2.30 percent, which is the lowest during the period of conflict and war.

The low percentage may have come from donors' tendency to prioritize the war crisis in Ukraine, where donor pledges reached 2.38 percent, the year that witnessed the coronavirus outbreak, which certainly affected the priorities of donor countries.

The report concludes that, on average, donor pledges for the humanitarian response did not exceed 9.48 percent for 2015-2022, contributing to funding gaps for humanitarian needs at the end of each year.

According to the UN classification, the per capita share of foreign aid in Yemen is the lowest at the regional level and was estimated at $41 in 2013, compared to about $74 for regional countries and about $51 for developing countries.

The data also indicate that the average per capita share of foreign aid in Yemen was at most $4.22 during 1991-2013 and that the impact of this development was not significantly tangible, as the weak economic situation contributed to the conflict.

Most development support programs were halted, which contributed to the decline in economic growth and even led to negative growth rates and cumulative losses in the gross domestic product, increasing poverty and unemployment rates, according to the report.

A confidential document obtained by the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) has revealed massive money smuggling operations carried out via Syrian Airlines to Moscow.
The operations are described as among the most corrupt financial transfers orchestrated by the now-defunct Syrian regime.
According to the document, the majority of the funds stem from profits made through the production and trade of Captagon, a highly lucrative illicit drug.
The head of SOHR, Rami Abdel Rahman, told Asharq Al-Awsat that the most recent transfer took place just four days before Syrian President Bashar al-Assad fled to Moscow in December of last year.
Rami Abdel Rahman also affirmed that the leaked document underscores the “deep involvement of the former Syrian regime in illegal activities.”
He added that further investigations could uncover a vast network of secret financial operations used to transfer large sums of money from Syria to Russia and other countries under official cover and without oversight.
“The regime, led by the ousted Assad and his brother, spearheaded drug-related investments, particularly through the production, promotion, and export of Captagon,” Abdel Rahman told Asharq Al-Awsat.
He explained that one key route involved a small port near the Afamia chalets on Syria's coast, which previously belonged to Rifaat al-Assad, the brother of late former President Hafez al-Assad.
From there, shipments were sent via smugglers to Italian ports, where collaborating traders distributed the drugs globally.
A Syrian source based in Russia, closely monitoring the regime’s activities and investments there, said the content of the leaked document is not new but that its official confirmation adds weight to prior claims.
“Western media had previously reported on the regime’s money-smuggling operations, which led to some loyalists being added to international sanctions lists, particularly regime-linked businessmen like Mudalal Khouri,” the source, who requested anonymity, told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Sanctions were also imposed on individuals accused of money laundering for the regime.
The source confirmed that the operations were conducted using Syrian Airlines flights to Moscow.
“There were dozens of such flights, each loaded with hard currency—mostly US dollars and €500 euro notes,” the source said.
The money was reportedly delivered directly from the airport to the Syrian regime's embassy in Moscow, where it was distributed to loyalist businessmen.
These funds were then invested in Russian and Belarusian banks, real estate, and commercial properties. Some of the money was also used to establish companies in both countries.
The operations were allegedly overseen by Mohammed Makhlouf, the maternal uncle of Assad.

Saudi Arabia Largest Donor to Humanitarian Effort in Yemen