World Bank Funds Equipping 1,000 Schools in Yemen

Yemeni schoolgirls take lessons in a classroom at a public school on the outskirts of Sanaa. (EPA)
Yemeni schoolgirls take lessons in a classroom at a public school on the outskirts of Sanaa. (EPA)
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World Bank Funds Equipping 1,000 Schools in Yemen

Yemeni schoolgirls take lessons in a classroom at a public school on the outskirts of Sanaa. (EPA)
Yemeni schoolgirls take lessons in a classroom at a public school on the outskirts of Sanaa. (EPA)

The World Bank has launched a project to restore education in Yemen. It aims at facilitating the return of children to schools by providing incentives for teachers and meals for children as well as equipping and rehabilitating more than 1,000 schools across Yemen.

“More than 2.4 million school-aged Yemeni girls and boys are out of school, and about 8.5 million primary school-aged children need humanitarian assistance. About one-third of the population in Yemen needs food assistance and clothing. Food and other school-related expenses prevent many families from sending their children to school. Additionally, about a third of all education facilities have been damaged or destroyed,” the World Bank revealed in a report.

It confirmed that “Education is critical to unlock children’s potential and shape a brighter future for them and their country.”

Tania Meyer, World Bank Country Manager for Yemen, said: “It's an opportunity to break the cycle of poverty and conflict. Our education project is an investment in the future of Yemen.”

The objective of the Restoring Education and Learning Project (REAL) is to improve access to education and improve conditions for learning in Yemen. The project provides a school package to over 1,100 schools across Yemen that includes four key elements that are crucial for enrollment, attendance, and learning: (i) performance-based teacher payments and teacher training; (ii) distribution of learning materials and school supplies; (iii) rehabilitation of school infrastructure, including WASH; and (iv) school feeding.

The project is jointly funded by International Development Assistance (IDA) and the Global Partnership for Education (GPE), and it is implemented in partnership with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme (WFP), and Save the Children, in close collaboration with Yemen’s Ministry of Education.

The REAL project reaches almost 600,000 children across seven Yemeni governorates.

It targets the most vulnerable districts, especially in areas that host many displaced people.

The school feeding program under REAL provides children with a nutritious midday school snack. The snack is enriched with micronutrients and vitamins, to address children’s needs throughout the long school day. Providing a snack in class is an incentive to get children back in the classroom.

“In Yemen, where the conflict has caused widespread disruption and devastation, too many children are left out of school and too many children leave primary school unable to read a simple text. Education is a necessity. It is the only way to empower the next generation with the skills, knowledge, and hope they need to build a better future for themselves and their community,” the report added.

“The impact of school feeding in Yemen simply can’t be understated. Millions of children here don’t have enough to eat, and hungry children struggle to learn and grow and thrive. This jeopardizes their chance at a healthy and productive life. The school feeding program is a game changer, giving children the calories and nutrients, they need to concentrate in class, to do well in school.”

“The World Bank REAL project also finances the healthy kitchen program, reaching 4000 children in poor neighborhoods in Aden with freshly prepared meals. The war has affected us all. It affected the rich, the poor, and everyone. It was difficult to send my children to school because of the cost of food, breakfast, transportation fees, and stationery,” according to Richard Ragan, the Yemen country director at World Food Programme.

Millions of people in Yemen are suffering from the compounded effects of violence, ongoing economic crisis, and critical funding shortfalls, resulting in high levels of food insecurity and lack of access to basic services, said Save the Children.

In 2022, the Humanitarian Response Plan for Yemen was only half funded, with children’s sectors among the lowest funded. Child protection received only 6.8 percent of the required funding and the education response plan only received 12.2 percent of what was requested.

"We struggle with extreme overcrowding. We have between 80 to 90 pupils per classroom.”

Save the Children’s Director of Advocacy, Campaigns, Communication, and Media Shannon Orcutt said: “The underfunding of the Humanitarian Response Plan in Yemen is nothing short of a tragedy for the children of this country. An estimated 4.5 million Yemenis have been internally displaced since the beginning of the conflict yet funding for camp coordination and management received less than 3 percent of the necessary funding. Half of the Internally Displaced Persons in Yemen are children, and this lack of funding has serious impacts.”



Lebanese Parties Warn Against Hezbollah Keeping Light Weapons

Lebanese Shiite mourners gathered on Monday in Beirut’s southern suburbs to mark Ashura in a ceremony organized by Hezbollah (AFP)
Lebanese Shiite mourners gathered on Monday in Beirut’s southern suburbs to mark Ashura in a ceremony organized by Hezbollah (AFP)
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Lebanese Parties Warn Against Hezbollah Keeping Light Weapons

Lebanese Shiite mourners gathered on Monday in Beirut’s southern suburbs to mark Ashura in a ceremony organized by Hezbollah (AFP)
Lebanese Shiite mourners gathered on Monday in Beirut’s southern suburbs to mark Ashura in a ceremony organized by Hezbollah (AFP)

A recent proposal circulating in Lebanon that would allow Hezbollah to retain its light weapons while surrendering heavy and medium arms has triggered widespread political backlash, with critics warning it poses a grave threat to state sovereignty and public safety.

The suggestion, floated amid long-running debate over the group’s arsenal, argues that other political parties and armed groups also possess light weapons for various reasons. But key political factions have rejected the idea outright, citing Lebanon’s bloody past and the potential for renewed violence.

Opponents of the proposal have pointed to the events of May 7, 2008, when Hezbollah fighters overran parts of Beirut and Mount Lebanon in a show of military force, underscoring the dangers of allowing any non-state group to keep arms.

“Classifying weapons as heavy, medium or light is useless,” said Kataeb Party leader Sami Gemayel in a post on X. “If heavy arms threaten Lebanon’s regional security, light weapons are even more dangerous to the foundations of the state.”

Gemayel reiterated that only the Lebanese army and legitimate security forces should bear arms, calling for the country to be entirely free of weapons held by non-state actors.

MP Ghada Ayoub, of the Lebanese Forces-led "Strong Republic" bloc, echoed that view, insisting the state must assert full sovereignty over all Lebanese territory and outlaw any form of armed presence outside the official security apparatus.

“There is only one armed group operating outside the state, and that is Hezbollah,” Ayoub told Asharq al-Awsat. “It must become a purely political party and clearly, unequivocally declare an end to its military activity.”

Ayoub also criticized recent remarks by Hezbollah Deputy Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem, who vowed the group’s “resistance” would continue “without asking anyone’s permission.”

“The Lebanese state is responsible for enforcing a monopoly on the use of arms,” she said. “It must stop playing the role of a mediator or hiding behind the fear of war and internal strife. Time is not on Lebanon’s side.”

Ahmad Al-Kheir, a lawmaker with the “National Moderation” bloc, dismissed the proposal as “stillborn,” warning that light weapons have already been used to intimidate citizens and skew political dynamics.

“We saw yesterday how light arms were paraded through Beirut’s streets in a blatant attempt at provocation and coercion,” he said. “This is the real danger - using these weapons as leverage in political life, as we saw in the May 7 events and the occupation of downtown Beirut.”

“No one in Lebanon will accept this,” Al-Kheir added.

Additionally, critics warn that allowing any non-state entity to retain weapons threatens state authority and risks further destabilizing the country.

Al-Kheir urged Hezbollah and any other party in possession of light weapons to hand them over to the state, citing the recent example set by former Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) leader Walid Jumblatt.

“Jumblatt announced that his party had surrendered its weapons weeks ago. This is the model to follow,” he told Asharq al-Awsat.

MP Waddah Al-Sadek, of the Change Coalition, said he had no objection to a phased disarmament process that begins with heavy and medium weapons, followed by light arms. He dismissed fears of civil war, saying only one side is armed.

“Armed conflict requires two sides. The army will not engage in internal fighting,” he said. “This talk of civil war is just fear-mongering unless Hezbollah resorts again to something like the May 7 scenario to avoid disarming.”

Al-Sadek stressed that Lebanon’s response to the US proposal - reportedly outlining phased disarmament - will be critical. “Does anyone really have an alternative to engaging with this proposal?” he asked.

Deputy head of the Free Patriotic Movement, Naji Hayek, said all weapons must be handed over, rejecting the idea that civilians or political groups should be allowed to keep light arms for self-defense.

“This theory no longer holds,” Hayek told Asharq al-Awsat, adding that training camps used to militarize society should be shut down. “Light and medium weapons are not only with Hezbollah - they exist with other parties that have military structures, and these too must be dismantled.”

Political analyst Qassem Qassir, who is close to Hezbollah’s thinking, said there is no internal consensus, nor any agreement with Hezbollah, to give up its heavy and medium arms while retaining light weapons.

“The party insists the issue is still the Israeli occupation and ongoing aggression,” he said. “For Hezbollah, no discussion on disarmament is possible until those threats end.”

Qassir warned that if a political solution to the weapons issue is not reached, “we will inevitably face military risks and internal conflict.”

Jumblatt announced in late June that his party had handed over its remaining weapons, including light and medium arms that were gradually accumulated after the May 7 clashes in 2008 during a period of heightened tension with Hezbollah.

He said the weapons had been centrally stored and fully turned over to the Lebanese state.