German Minister: Our interest is not to allow Yemen becomes like Somalia
The Source: SANA'A/hadharamaut.info/sabanews.net - 17/01/2011
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German Federal Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development Dirk Niebel said German's aid to Yemen are focused in field of water, education and supporting good governance.
The following interview broadcasted by a German radio sheds lights on German support to Yemen.
Did Germany really provide Yemen more than € 80 million in the past few years? What can this support achieve in Yemen?
We are working in Yemen in three main fields. The first is education, educational qualification is a basic condition for independent life and education in Yemen is inaccessible to all, especially girls. Education is basic condition to enable people, regardless who is ruling and thinking about what will happen. That is why education's sector is important.
The second is water resources which are depleting continuously. We are working together in managing water resources to utilize the available water quantities economically. We also work together in field of providing water and sanitation to ease pressures resulting in water scarcity, an increasingly problem because of population growth.
The third field, the important one, is good governance. This topic is greater than building an authority for fighting corruption and a court for revising account. Rather it is represented in political dialogue between the authority and the opposition. This dialogue has become paralyzed.
Did you visit development projects there? Did you talk with concerned bodies and investigated where your money went?
I took a look at some projects and admired them all. However I was not able to visit all the projects in this short time. We were not able to visit the locations of all these projects because of security situation. Even locals and investors could not do so. This is a bad situation we admire to be changed via new security notion to see whether the money is put in the right trend.
Regarding the second part of the question, I say yes I have talked with parties, the government and the opposition and I was confirmed that there are two trains; every one goes against the direction of another. Unlike the situation here, the political address is not managed by discussion. Every party attacks another violently so that the impressing thing is giving concern to the agreement between the government and the opposition signed several months ago to reach national strategy for communication and conduct April parliamentary elections.
Do you think that they will lessen to you? Is not bit silly that German development minister comes to preach by tolerance?
No, I am not silly and I also know they depicted a good picture to me in most cases. On the other hand, the international group created Yemen's Group Friends, which is composed of Gulf countries and other European countries, Germany among them.
We wish to hold a dialogue session in Riyadh meeting scheduled next March. We whish this meeting discusses security problem. Turkish president has visited Yemen and US Secretary of State has done the same for talks with the President that the idea of amending the constitution could not be good as it is extending the rule via the law.
You mentioned in the beginning that Germany provides € 80 million, does not Germany preconditions linking the development assistances with the security situation, as the case with terrorism?
No, we do not precondition terror issue. However, we will hold negotiations with the new government in May and June on the bases of the Yemeni government's five- year plan. We will write down clear objectives and we will reach them in limited period to be able to provide the money. This is called the new German language, underway aid. Concerning good governance, it means at least no more deterioration of press freedom. If that is possible, press freedom, freedom of congregation and freedom of expression must be boosted. There must be an agreement with other personalities whether it is possible to reach these aims.
If it is not possible to reach these goals, will you cancel the funds?
If these goals are not reachable, funds will not be provided. We agreed on joint aims we are not occupiers so that these goals we agreed on are the regulation. If the government has realized one of these goals and we set up initial joint goals, we would provide the money. I think that will be fair agreement.
Can we say that Germany has an interest in Yemen so that it gives money for this interest?
First of all Germany adopts development policy directed by values. Respecting human rights, good governance and fighting corruption are of these values. Corruption is the biggest obstacles before development; it exists in all world countries. Besides values, I also said countries have interests. States have not friends but have interests and our interest is not to allow a country like Yemen becomes like Somalia and that chaos would spread along the two sides of the Red Sea.
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