Daijiworld Media Network - Sanaa

Sanaa, Nov 27: The United Arab Emirates has announced a pledge of 1 billion US dollars to support electricity and energy projects across conflict-stricken Yemen, state media reported on Wednesday. The commitment followed a meeting in Aden between Presidential Leadership Council chief Rashad Al-Alimi and UAE Ambassador Mohamed Hamad Al Zaabi, who reaffirmed the UAE’s intention to help revive Yemen’s devastated power infrastructure.

Yemen’s electricity network has been deteriorating for more than two decades, with southern regions—particularly Aden—enduring blackouts lasting up to 12 hours a day. Years of conflict have damaged power plants, disrupted fuel supplies, and divided administrative control, forcing millions to depend on private generators or small solar units to meet basic energy needs.

The funding pledge came alongside the First National Energy Conference in Aden, where government representatives, investors, and renewable energy specialists convened to explore long-term strategies for stabilising the grid and attracting capital to the sector, according to media reports.

Yemen has been engulfed in civil war since late 2014, when the Houthis seized key northern provinces and ousted the internationally recognised government from Sanaa. The prolonged conflict has severely weakened state institutions and compounded an already dire humanitarian situation.

Infrastructure damage, disrupted supply chains, and limited access to essential health and nutrition services have intensified hardship across the country. With the local currency in sharp decline and food prices soaring, millions of families now struggle to afford daily necessities.

In Aden’s public markets, the worsening economic strain is driving many households to sell personal belongings just to pay for food and medicine—underscoring the depth of the crisis as Yemen enters yet another year of instability and deprivation.