One-fifty houses are handed over under the “Adequate Housing” project in Aden

Aden, Yemen, 29 November 2022 – Aiming to improve the living conditions of families in Aden, Yemen, UN-Habitat, in partnership with the Saudi Development and Reconstruction Programme for Yemen (SDRPY) and Alwaleed Philanthropies (AP), rehabilitated the houses of 150 families in the last two years.

The houses were handed over in a ceremony attended by Eng. Ali Ahmed Hassan, the Deputy Minister of Public Works and Highways, Eng. Ahmed Al Madkhali, Head of SDPYR Aden Office, Erfan Ali, UN-Habitat Regional Representative for the Arab States, and Diego Zorrilla, Deputy Humanitarian Coordinator.

“The handover of 150 houses today under the rehabilitation project returns the smile and hope of our citizens. We hope for the acceleration of implementing future phases to alleviate the suffering of our citizens,” Eng. Ali Ahmed Hassan stated in the ceremony.  

The “Adequate Housing” project aims at improving the living conditions of low-income families in Aden, Yemen, through ensuring that their housing is safe, secure and designed to resist hazards.

"The developmental and economic support, through SDRPY, comes under direct guidance and care by the Custodian of the two Holy Mosques King Salman Bin Abdulaziz and His Royal Highness, the crown prince, with constant follow up by the Programme Director, Ambassador Mohamed Bin Saeed Al-Jaber, to improve the lives of the Yemeni people,” Eng. Ahmed Madkhali said. “The project is a product of a partnership between SDRPY, UN-Habitat and AP, following extensive efforts to improve the lives of our Yemeni brothers and sisters and to improve the living conditions of low-income Yemeni families.”

Over 4,000 people are set to benefit from this project after the rehabilitation of a targeted number of 600 low-income housing units in Aden.

“Rehabilitation of damaged houses allows Yemenis women, men and children of all ages to be as independent as possible in everyday activities, enabling participation in education, work, recreation, and meaningful life roles, such as taking care of family,” Dr. Erfan Ali commented.

The project also aims to enhance the capacity of Yemeni engineers and provide unemployed youth with vocational training. A partnership with the University of Aden resulted in the training of forty engineers from the Ministry of Public Works and Highways in the area of project management for construction.

Vocational training on skills such as carpentry and electrical installation is also provided for unemployed youth from targeted districts.

SDRPY have previously implemented 224 initiatives and projects throughout Yemeni governorates, focusing on 7 main areas. Education, health, water, energy, transportation, agriculture, fisheries and capacity building for governmental entities, in addition to development programmes.

Alwaleed Philanthropies

Over four decades, Alwaleed Philanthropies has supported and spent more than 4.4 billion dollars on social welfare and initiated more than 1000 projects in over +189 countries, managed by 10 Saudi female members, reaching more than 1 billion beneficiaries around the world, regardless of gender, race, or religion. Alwaleed Philanthropies collaborates with a range of philanthropic, governmental, and nongovernmental to combat poverty, empower women and youth, develop communities, provide disaster relief, and create cultural understanding through education. It seeks to build bridges for a more compassionate, tolerant, and accepting world.

UN-Habitat

UN-Habitat works in over 90 countries supporting people in cities and human settlements for a better urban future. Working with governments and local partners, its high impact projects combine world-class expertise and local knowledge to deliver timely and targeted solutions. The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development includes a dedicated Goal on cities, SDG 11 – to make cities inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable.

www.unhabitat.org