For the next 42 months, farmers, food businesses and local institutions across Yemen will work together on a €10 million effort to make agriculture more resilient and create jobs. The project, called SANABEL, is backed by the European Union (EU), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). The partners signed the agreement in Aden and Amman.
Agriculture supports livelihoods and local economies, but farmers and businesses need dependable water, stronger links to markets and ways to cope with climate pressures. SANABEL aims to strengthen the connections between growing food, processing it locally and selling it. The project is designed to support economic recovery while helping families find more stable ways to earn a living.
The full name of the initiative is Sustainable Agrifood and Natural Resources for Accelerating Business Growth, Economic Resilience and Livelihoods. Over its 42-month term, it will work with farmers, businesses and local institutions to make agricultural value chains more productive and better connected to markets. A value chain is the series of steps that takes a product from farm to customer.
The project will support farmers as they adopt climate-smart practices, improve water management and build stronger ties with businesses and markets. It will also promote sustainable management of natural resources, especially water, which underpins Yemen’s rural economy. By helping farms produce more reliably and enabling local food processing, the partners hope to open opportunities across the sector: work for young people, growth for entrepreneurs and steadier incomes for families.
SANABEL will build on existing initiatives and local development priorities, with an emphasis on solutions that can keep helping after the project ends. Its goal is not only to address immediate needs, but to strengthen the foundations for local economies and employment in the years ahead.
EU Ambassador to the Republic of Yemen Patrick Simonnet said the project brings together climate-smart production, natural resource management, stronger markets and access to jobs. FAO Yemen Representative a.i. Adam Yao said the partnership would work with farmers, local institutions and agrifood businesses to improve water management and strengthen value chains, while expanding opportunities for vulnerable communities.
UNDP Yemen Resident Representative Noura Hamladji pointed to the need to protect incomes as displacement is expected to rise. UNDP’s work will focus on creating jobs, restoring livelihoods, supporting private-sector development and strengthening local governance, she said. Linking climate-smart agriculture with stronger markets and local enterprise, the partners aim to help communities and businesses withstand shocks and avoid deeper hardship.
The agreement sets out a practical, long-term approach: strengthen farms, water management and market links so that more value stays within local communities. If those connections take hold, SANABEL’s benefits could reach beyond the fields to businesses, workers and families building livelihoods across Yemen.