Yemen

in transition

name: Sanaa geographic coordinates: 15 21 N, 44 12 E time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) etymology: the name is reputed to mean "fortified place" in an ancient language

chief of state: Presidential Leadership Council Chairperson Dr. Rashad Muhammad al-ALIMI (since 19 April 2022) head of government: Prime Minister Salim Salih BIN BURAYK (since 9 May 2025) cabinet: 24 members from northern and southern Yemen, with representatives from Yemen's major political parties election/appointment process: formerly, the president was directly elected by absolute-majority popular vote in 2 rounds, if needed, for a 7-year term (eligible for a second term); vice president appointed by the president; prime minister appointed by the president most recent election date: 21 February 2012 election results: 2012: Abd Rabuh Mansur HADI (GPC) elected consensus president note: on 7 April 2022, President Abd Rabuh Mansur HADI announced his abdication, the dismissal of Vice President ALI MUHSIN al-Ahmar and the formation of a Presidential Leadership Council, an eight-member body chaired by former minister Rashad AL-ALIMI; on 19 April 2022, the Council was sworn in before Parliament and began assuming the responsibilities of the president and vice president and carrying out the political, security, and military duties of the government; in May 2025, Chairperson al-ALIMI made changes to his cabinet

legislature name: Parliament (Majlis) legislative structure: bicameral note: the last legislative election occurred in 2003, and the six-year term for the House of Representatives expired in 2009. Ongoing instability, beginning in 2011, has since prevented new elections. A new Shura Council was appointed in 2021 and is currently chaired by Dr. Ahmed Obaid bin Dagher (as of Jan 2025).

highest court(s): Supreme Court (consists of the court president, 2 deputies, and nearly 50 judges; court organized into constitutional, civil, commercial, family, administrative, criminal, military, and appeals scrutiny divisions) judge selection and term of office: judges appointed by the Supreme Judicial Council, which is chaired by the president of the republic and includes 10 high-ranking judicial officers; judges serve for life with mandatory retirement at age 65 subordinate courts: appeal courts; district or first instance courts; commercial courts

history: adopted by referendum 16 May 1991 (following unification)

AFESD, AMF, CAEU, CD, EITI (temporarily suspended), FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAS, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSMA, MONUSCO, NAM, OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNISFA, UNMHA, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNVIM, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU (NGOs), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

Yemeni Armed Forces: Yemeni National Army, Air Force and Air Defense, Navy and Coastal Defense Forces, Border Guard, Strategic Reserve Forces (includes Special Forces and Presidential Protection Brigades, which are under the Ministry of Defense but responsible to the president), Popular Committee Forces (aka Popular Resistance Forces; government-backed tribal militia) Ministry of Interior: Security Forces, Emergency Forces, Counterterrorism Units (2025) note 1: both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have raised and continue to back tribal and regionally based irregular forces in Yemen note 2: Houthi (alt Huthi; aka Ansarallah) forces include land, aerospace (air, missile), naval/coastal defense, presidential protection, special operations, internal security, and militia/tribal auxiliary components; a considerable portion--up to 70 percent by some estimates--of Yemen s military and security forces defected in whole or in part to former president SALAH and the Houthi opposition in 2011-2015

limited available information; 18 is the legal minimum age for military service under the Yemeni Government (2025) note: there is widespread recruitment of fighters by numerous armed groups operating in Yemen; all parties to the civil war have been implicated in child soldier recruitment and use; in 2022, the Houthis signed a plan with the UN to end the recruitment and use of child soldiers; Houthi leaders previously pledged to end the use of child soldiers in 2012, as did the Government of Yemen in 2014; in 2019, the Saudi and UAE-led coalition committed to protect children in a memorandum of understanding signed with the UN

government forces under the Yemeni Ministry of Defense are responsible for both external and internal defense; their priorities are the Houthi separatists (aka Ansarallah), the terrorist groups al-Qa ida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham in Yemen (ISIS-Yemen), and maritime security, particularly against arms smuggling; in 2022, the Yemeni Government and the Houthis signed a truce, halting most fighting and establishing humanitarian measures; the former front lines of conflict, in some areas mirroring Yemen s pre-unification borders, remain static; AQAP and ISIS-Yemen continue to be active in remote areas (2025)

$18.719 billion (2024 est.) $18.908 billion (2023 est.) $19.294 billion (2022 est.) note: data in 2015 dollars

$200 (2024 est.) $200 (2023 est.) $300 (2022 est.) note: data in 2015 dollars

0.8% (2018 est.) -5.1% (2017 est.) -9.4% (2016 est.) note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

29.1% (2022 est.) 26% (2021 est.) 19.6% (2020 est.) note: annual % change based on consumer prices

68.1% of GDP (2016 est.)

$384.5 million (2017 est.) $938.469 million (2016 est.) $1.867 billion (2015 est.) note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars

$4.079 billion (2017 est.) $8.256 billion (2016 est.) $7.697 billion (2015 est.) note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars

17.1% (2024 est.) 17.1% (2023 est.) 17.4% (2022 est.) note: % of labor force seeking employment

revenues: $2.207 billion (2019 est.) expenditures: $3.585 billion (2019 est.)

crude oil production and petroleum refining; small-scale production of cotton textiles, leather goods; food processing; handicrafts; aluminum products; cement; commercial ship repair; natural gas production

mangoes/guavas, potatoes, milk, onions, spices, chicken, sorghum, watermelons, tomatoes, grapes (2023) note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage

total: 34,505,496 (2025 est.) male: 17,275,539 female: 17,229,957

2.22% (2025 est.)

0-14 years: 34.4% (male 5,622,998/female 5,430,285) 15-64 years: 62.2% (male 10,112,603/female 9,865,805) 65 years and over: 3.4% (2024 est.) (male 485,538/female 623,214)

29.07 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

6.21 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

-0.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

total population: 68.2 years (2024 est.) male: 65.8 years female: 70.6 years

urban population: 39.8% of total population (2023) rate of urbanization: 3.71% annual rate of change (2015-20 est.)

predominantly Arab; but also Afro-Arab, South Asian, European

Arabic (official) major-language sample(s): كتاب حقائق العالم، المصدر الذي لا يمكن الاستغناء عنه للمعلومات الأساسية (Arabic) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information. note: a distinct Socotri language is widely used on Socotra Island and Archipelago; Mahri is still fairly widely spoken in eastern Yemen

Muslim 99.1% (official; virtually all are citizens, an estimated 65% are Sunni and 35% are Shia), other 0.9% (includes Jewish, Baha'i, Hindu, and Christian; many are refugees or temporary foreign residents) (2020 est.)

female: 54.1% (2023 est.)

petroleum, fish, rock salt, marble; small deposits of coal, gold, lead, nickel, and copper; fertile soil in west

Ansarallah (Houthis); Hizballah; Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)/Qods Force; Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS) - Yemen; al-Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in the Terrorism reference guide

tier rating: Special Case; for more details, go to: https://www.state.gov/reports/2025-trafficking-in-persons-report/yemen/

refugees: 60,921 (2024 est.) IDPs: 4,795,983 (2024 est.)

37 (2025)

total: 30 (2023) by type: general cargo 2, oil tanker 1, other 27

total subscriptions: 20 million (2023 est.) subscriptions per 100 inhabitants: 51 (2023 est.)

percent of population: 14% (2020 est.)