Yemen Civil Society Organizations in Transition : A Mapping and Capacity Assessment of Development-Oriented Civil Society Organizations in Five Governorates
Civil society in Yemen is vibrant and diverse but highly fragmented. It includes independent registered and organized civic groups, less organized local self-help organizations, and charity oriented groups. The first period, from 1950 to 1963, saw...
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| Language: | English en_US |
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Washington, DC
2014
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2013/06/18267982/yemen-civil-society-organizations-transition http://hdl.handle.net/10986/16638 |
| Summary: | Civil society in Yemen is vibrant and
diverse but highly fragmented. It includes independent
registered and organized civic groups, less organized local
self-help organizations, and charity oriented groups. The
first period, from 1950 to 1963, saw a growth in
associational activity in the modern enclave of late
colonial Aden and within the protectorates of the northern
imamate amidst heavy immigration and modernization. A second
stage of development took place in the late 1970s and 1980s
with very little central control but exceptional affluence
thanks to remittances from citizens employed in the Gulf. As
the political transition in Yemen continues, there is
renewed interest in engaging local Civil Society
Organizations (CSOs) in the process of service delivery,
decentralization, institution building and in encouraging
inclusion and greater citizen participation. The Government
has requested that the World Bank update its earlier work on
CSOs in Yemen to map and to assess the capacities of
present-day, development-oriented CSOs in five governorates.
Nearly all of the CSOs that participated in this study were
formally registered, non-governmental organizations that
were generally independent of tribal or religious
affiliation. There is an important opening in Yemen at
present to encourage greater social accountability among
CSOs and through CSO-Government partnerships. Social
accountability includes a growing emphasis on beneficiary
engagement in monitoring and assessing government
performance as well as service providers, particularly in
providing feedback on, and voicing demand for, improved
service delivery. Based on this study's findings, it is
recommended that the Government reform CSOs-related
procedures, including registration, re-licensing, and
decentralize avenues for CSO-ministry collaboration on
service delivery and standards development to the
governorate-level branches of the respective Ministries.
Finally, it is recommended that training be made available
for Yemeni journalists that cover the work of the
country's civic sector or development issues in general. |
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