German Development Service (DED): more than 25 years working in Yemen [Archives:2006/932/Reportage]
March 27 2006
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The following is an interview with DED General Manager Dr. Jurgen Wilhelm, who was in Sana'a to mark the occasion.
Why are you in Yemen today?
Because we are celebrating more than 25 years of Yemeni-German cooperation. We have been here since 1979 and that's a good reason for celebrating this event.
I gather this is not your first visit to Yemen?
No, it is actually my fifth. I came in the late '80s and then again several times during the '90s. We celebrated a regional conference with all our people from Asia here in Sana'a at the Taj Sheba Hotel in 2000.
When did you first visit Yemen?
In 1987.
How did you find Yemen after all these years? Is there real progress, are we getting better?
It still is a complicated situation, an economic situation. Of course, I was here before unification of North and South, so I know the country fairly well. Of course, there's tremendous development as far as housing and construction is concerned. I remember that on my second visit to Yemen, I was advised not to stay at the Sheraton Hotel because it was outside the city center. Nowadays, it's part of the city center, so to speak. So there's more development and more training and education has improved.
But on the other hand, Yemen has a very high and difficult, not to mention possibly dangerous, birth rate. The birth rate problem will create problems for the next generations. Those born today will go to school in 10 years and to universities, say, in 20 years' time. So that will create many long-term problems – economic problems, qualification, labor force and employment problems and so forth.
So on one hand, there's a wonderful peaceful situation today, compared to what was before unification. One must not forget that it was a big problem that needed to be solved. On the other hand, Yemen still faces many serious problems.
Were DED's activities before unification on both sides of Yemen?
No, we actually started working in the north. As you know, the situation was different during the Cold War. According to the Cold War distinction, the south was supported by the Soviet Union and former Communist East Germany.
You've mentioned the birth rate problem in Yemen. Are you involved in solving this problem?
Yes, we are trying to help improve awareness of both men and women as far as reproductive health is concerned, as you can see in the exhibition outside where some contraceptive methods are displayed.
This problem actually is a social and economic problem. Normally, it's easier to improve the situation in cities than in rural areas because people in rural areas still stick to their traditions. We're working on this, but the whole Yemeni society must work on this problem too.
Many journalists today have expressed their surprise at DED achievements in Yemen. Are you thinking to engage Yemeni media more to follow up and show the public your various efforts?
Perhaps we haven't reported our activities very often. I'm happy that this is a good reason to do it again. I'll instruct my director to keep in regular contact with you [the media] so you'll be provided information about what we're doing.
As you know, there are many German development agencies working toward Yemeni-German development cooperation. How is DED different from the others?
The most important point for the partner is that support is paid by the German taxpayers and that a German expert is coming from Europe to improve the skill or qualification of the Yemeni partner. For the partner, it's more or less of no interest whether such support comes from this organization or another. We all are working together in a comprehensive way.
There may be five fingers on a hand, but the hand comes from one body and the body is the German Development Cooperation altogether. This is the policy behind our work. So, there are different qualifications, investments, technical and personal cooperation (like DED). For example, in the water sector, the German Development Bank KFW is responsible for investment. But then you need technical advice and you must improve people's awareness on the local level. GTZ is taking care of this.
We're trying to improve the skills of those in villages (where water comes to) because they must get used to using water. Water is expensive and not free of charge. Especially in Arab countries, water is often a political factor. It's like bread – if there's an increase in the bread price, governments can be wiped away, as has happened in many countries.
The same is with water. People in rural areas think water must come for free, but this is impossible. It must be charged, in a modest way, of course. People must get accustomed to this. It's easier for them to accept this if an expert from abroad tells them this is a worldwide problem and that it's not their government doing harm to them. DED often works as a facilitator to increase acceptance of new development or investments. So, we are working on three levels: national, regional and local.
Poverty reduction and small business promotion are among DED's goals. Can you give examples of DED projects in this regard?
In Taiz and Aden, we're working to support business associations. People very often start businesses but don't have enough skills and never learn to make a profit, which is the essence of doing business anyway. Therefore, people need to know how to work profitably and this is very complicated. Thus, business associations advise, improve links and go to deal with the market.
So, we're not helping individual businessmen but rather we are working to improve qualification of business associations which are more accessible to local businessmen. In this way, we help develop a local area, not instruct an individual, as that isn't development. We focus on mediators, not individuals. This is the same idea behind development cooperation. You shouldn't try to fish instead of the fisherman but rather train him to fish better and improve his capability to get more money from his fishing.
As for poverty reduction, we improve the situation of the poor by training them to acquire better skills and job opportunities, to open their minds and help them obtain better qualification so they'll be hired by a business or company.
How do you determine suitable areas in Yemen and their needs?
This is a consultative process with the Yemeni government. We are only guests in this country offering support. The definition of priorities must be set by Yemen's government, which of course consults the World Bank, the UN, the Germans, the British and other international organizations. Thus, there is a huge consultative process going on but in the end, the Yemeni government tells us to please help in this particular sector while others help in that one.
How do you evaluate the progress of DED projects in Yemen? Are you satisfied?
Yes, it's done in a very professional manner. There's always an evaluation process conducted by professional consultants hired from independent organizations. They come to Yemen to inspect and evaluate GTZ, DED, etc., to see whether results are positive and so on. Their work results then are followed up by our Yemeni partners.
Are there any obstacles that hinder your efforts?
No, there's always hope and a professional attitude from our Yemeni partners. Our work is professional and friendly. Yemen's government is very open and there are no obstacles, as far as frankness and openness. There are many other more difficult countries. In this regard, Yemen is a very positive and open example.
Intercultural dialogue between Europe and the Arab world is one of DED's goals. Is this part of your activities in Yemen?
No, not in Yemen, but we are doing it in other countries like Afghanistan, Syria and Palestine. Intercultural dialogue is not only about dialogue between Islamic countries and the West, although it became so after September 11. You must know that there are nearly six million Muslims of Turkish background living in Germany and I can say there's no problem with that at all. I buy my daily food and vegetables from a Turkish shop. This is daily life for me.
Recently, a number of senior German officials and cultural figures have visited Yemen? Do you think this helps your work?
Yes, I hope so. I know there have been many visits by poets and writers such as Gunter Grass, who is supporting our project in a nice way in Shibam Hadramout, which is clay construction. For us Europeans, it was a bit strange in the beginning because we were asking ourselves: “Local people have been doing this kind of work for hundreds of years, so why must a German or a European now come to Shibam to instruct people how to construct their houses?” But we realized that they've lost the knowledge, as it wasn't fashionable enough and people didn't like it any longer. Only a few retained such knowledge, but young people weren't interested in learning it. So we're now trying to make it attractive for tourism, living conditions and cultural heritage. With our partnership, there's more awareness that this cultural heritage is worth preserving.
How do you see the future of the Yemeni-German relationship?
Well, there will be a difficult path to follow, as we heard in the press conference that the economic situation is still critical. However, the German government has announced that we are open, ready and willing to intensify friendly Yemeni-German cooperation in the future.
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