The failure of legitimacy provides the Houthi economy with hard currency
English - Thursday 16 December 2021 الساعة 09:43 am
Aden, NewsYemen, Exclusive
The Minister of Social Affairs and Labor in the legitimate government, Muhammad Saeed Al-Zauri, warned of the consequences of transferring the internationally funded emergency cash transfer project from the Ministry’s Social Welfare Fund to the Social Fund for Development in Sana’a, which is under the control of the Houthi group.
In a memorandum submitted to Prime Minister Maeen Abdul-Malik, the minister explained the consequences and concerns of transferring the project, including the data of the Social Welfare Fund, which includes about 1.5 million cases, a rule that was updated during the implementation of the project during the past eight disbursement cycles.
Where the minister warned against handing over these data that include the governorates Including the liberated governorates of the Social Fund for Development in Sana'a, which are under the control of the Houthi militia, "which is a serious matter that cannot be accepted," according to the minister.
The Minister of Social Affairs and Labor indicated that "the management of the exchange of the value of the project, which is in hard currency, away from the central bank in the capital, Aden, and the project's reliance on exchange agencies and banks whose centers are in Sana'a, will contribute to the deterioration of the currency and the collapse of the national economy."
The minister announced his ministry's refusal to transfer the emergency cash transfer project to the Social Fund for Development, calling on the Prime Minister to take what is necessary to stop the transfer process and return the project to the Social Welfare Fund, the main center in the capital, Aden, as it is the legally authorized body to do so.
Last week, Al-Ayyam newspaper revealed, quoting UN sources in the Jordanian capital, Amman, that the World Bank and the United Nations UNICEF were preparing to hand over the "emergency cash transfers" project funded by the US and British State Departments at about $75-100 million to the Houthi group, through the Social Fund for Development.
Funds of international projects implemented by United Nations organizations are transferred to commercial banks in Sanaa, which is under the control of the Houthi militia. It is one of the most important sources of hard currency for the militias, as its economy sources estimate it to exceed one billion dollars annually.
And legitimacy failed to force the United Nations organizations to move their headquarters from Sana’a to Aden, and it also failed to obligate them to spend the funds of the projects they implement through the central bank in Aden.
