According to the report, Climate Change Profile: Yemen, by the government of the Netherlands, “Yemen faces serious risks from climate change that further threaten {its} already fragile state. As climate change and rapid population growth put more and more pressure on critical resources, especially water, Yemen shows what may happen in the region as a whole. Yemen is a predominantly arid country on the Arabian Peninsula with a history of food aid dependence. It experiences extreme water scarcity due to over- exploitation of groundwater that leads to saltwater intrusion in coastal areas.”[1]
Climate Change Profile: Yemen, also relays, “Climate change is expected to increase temperatures, {the} variability of rainfall, and heavy precipitation events. The increase in heavy rains in combination with rising temperatures, especially in the north, will probably lead to shortened growing seasons. Shorter growing seasons threaten food security and competition, for dwindling natural resources could further fuel conflict. On-going conflict, a lack of adequate natural resources management, weak governance, as well as other factors seriously hinder Yemen’s ability to address the current and future impact{s} of climate change.”[2]
https://www.gfdrr.org/en/publication/climate-risk-and-adaptation-country-profile-yemen
Temperatures in Yemen are higher than the world average, and projections indicate that the country will endure longer droughts and heatwaves in the coming years. By 2060 temperatures are expected to rise to 3.3 ° C and by the end of the century it may reach 5.1 ° C. The country also has the lowest rate of groundwater per capita in the world. Unfair groundwater use exceeds regeneration capacity, while hurricanes along the east coast and Socotra Island lead to flooding which eliminates fertile topsoil and damages infrastructure. Yemen is not part of the Paris Climate Change Agreement which makes it difficult to decrease the impacts of climate change that it endures, or utilize the benefits from the agreement projects. My academic major is civil engineering which relates to climate change; I intend to contribute to the designing and building of dams to benefit Yemen’s society by preventing the exploitation of underground water, and redirecting its use to farming which will make the country more sustainable and safe.
Yemen is located at the southern corner of the Arabian Peninsula overlooking the Red and Arabian Seas. It’s rainy season is in the spring and summer. Yemen is one of the Arab countries most affected by climate change, not to mention the huge developmental challenges it faces. In addition to frequent floods and droughts, climate change affects the already scarce water supply- and makes it scarcer. Urban centers in Yemen are under severe water shortages, and the livelihoods of a large number of the rural population are at risk because they are highly dependent on agriculture.
Reference:
http://www.yemen-nic.info/news/detail.php?ID=13846
https://blogs.worldbank.org/ar/arabvoices/meeting-challenge-climate-change-yemen-arabic
https://www.ye.undp.org/content/yemen/ar/home/sustainable-development-goals/goal-13-climat e-action.html
https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/climate-change-profile-yemen
[1] https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/climate-change-profile-yemen
[2] https://reliefweb.int/report/yemen/climate-change-profile-yemen
