[19 September 2007]

SANA'A, (Saba)- Yemen and the US Embassy and USAID signed on Wednesday a two-year grant agreement for more than $648,800 to support agricultural sector productivity in Yemen.

The grant agreement was signed by Agriculture and Irrigation Minister Mansour al-Hawshabi, Deputy Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Hisham Sharaf, US ambassador to Yemen Stephen Seche and Director of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Yemen Mike Sarhan. 

Minister al-Hawshabi appreciated the US continuous support for Yemen in general and for the agriculutral sector in particular, expressing hope many farmers to benefit from this grant. 

In a press statement released by the US embassy in Sana'a, the embassy said that the grant was a part of continued efforts to help the Yemeni government to reduce poverty and promote agricultural development in rural Yemen.

Upon the grant agreement, USAID committed to work closely with the Agriculture Ministry to provide technical assistance to Yemeni farmers to improve their agricultural yield, marketing, grading, packaging, and export activities.

"This assistance will help farmers and agricultural workers produce, market, and export their commodities. A portion of the grant will go to strengthening the administrative system of agricultural credit and loans available to Yemeni farmers. This program will also promote alliances with the Yemen Coffee Association and the fish farming sector in the Midi District of the Haja governorate", said the embassy.

Speaking at the signing ceremony, the US ambassador Seche said, "Yemen's farmers face a number of challenges….My government, and the people of the United States, stand ready to support the Government of Yemen in its efforts to provide agricultural developmental assistance to those most in need."

USAID has been operating in Yemen since 1958, and is currently working in five governorates: Shabwa, Marib, Al-Jawf, Amran, and Sa'ada. Since 2003, USAID has spent over $7.3 million to support the agricultural sector in Yemen.

YA/NS
Saba, US Embassy