The Educational Landscape in.....

Introduction

Yemen is currently navigating a critical demographic and educational turning point despite the inherent potential and resilience of its people. According to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) 2025-2026 report, Yemen possesses a significant "Youth Bulge"; with a median age of only 18.5 years, youth under the age of 30 constitute approximately 30% of the population [1]. This demographic phenomenon represents a vital, yet underutilized, resource that could be leveraged to drive economic and cognitive recovery. However, the educational system intended to empower this generation stands on the brink of collapse.

• The Current Education Crisis in Yemen

A decade of conflict has decimated educational infrastructure. By early 2026, data reflects the looming threat of a "lost generation." According to a 2024 UNICEF report, 4.5 million Yemeni children are out of school—double the number recorded at the start of the conflict in 2015. This suggests that "within five to ten years, the next generation may be illiterate, lacking basic numeracy, life skills, and foundational knowledge, which will become increasingly problematic as the country transitions to its next phase" [2].

Furthermore, the World Bank’s 2021 report indicates that "Learning Poverty" affects 95% of children in late primary school who cannot read a basic text. "Educational Deprivation" is equally stark, with 94% of students failing to achieve intermediate linguistic proficiency by the end of primary school [3]. Infrastructure decay remains a major hurdle; over 2,900 schools [4] (at least one in four) are unfit for use due to war damage, their use as shelters for displaced families, or occupation by armed groups.

Compounding this is the teacher crisis: over 170,000 teachers [5] (two-thirds of the workforce) have not received regular salaries for years, leading to a massive drain of qualified educators who have been forced to leave the profession to seek alternative livelihoods.

• The Current Role of Youth

Despite these challenges, Yemeni youth are not merely victims; they are active agents of resilience and local innovation. While youth face structural economic challenges stemming from the conflict, a nascent entrepreneurial movement is emerging to bridge these gaps.

The Economic Pillar: Labor Market and Empowerment

Youth unemployment remains a grave challenge. 2024 estimates place the general unemployment rate at 17.5% [6], skyrocketing to 32% among those aged 14–25, according to World Bank data [7]. Most youth are forced into the "survival economy" through unstable daily labor, following the loss of over 260,000 industrial sector jobs since the conflict began.

However, there is a notable shift toward entrepreneurship. In 2025, the UNDP launched initiatives to support young innovators in renewable energy, mobile maintenance, and local production. While international support is vital, it cannot substitute for the revival of local government support, the private sector, and microfinance institutions. Without institutionalized local sustainability, international aid remains a temporary fix in the face of severe funding shortages.

• Digital Adaptation and Technology

Despite weakened infrastructure and fragmented services, Yemeni youth are emerging as "Digital Citizens." As of January 2025, internet users reached 7.29 million (a 17.7% penetration rate), with 4.40 million social media users and 22.6 million mobile connections, covering 54.9% of the population [8].

A significant gender gap persists; males account for 86.4% of ad audiences on platforms like Facebook, due to social norms, service costs, and restricted access to public digital spaces for women.

The Shift Toward Digital Professions

By 2026, freelancing and remote work have become "lifelines" for ambitious youth seeking to bypass the local currency collapse. There is high demand for:

• Programming & Development: Mobile apps (Flutter, React Native) and web systems.
• Digital Marketing: SEO, social media management, and paid advertising.
• Visual Design: Branding, motion graphics, and UI/UX.
• E-commerce: Local stores for traditional products (e.g., honey, textiles) and digital goods.
• Civic Participation and Peacebuilding

While the youth movement faces polarization and security constraints, it remains the primary driver of community initiatives. Youth represent 30% of the population, yet often feel marginalized from decision-making centers. Despite this, they lead the volunteer sector; in 2024-2025, youth spearheaded over 30 major initiatives responding to climate change disasters, such as floods. The National Plan (2025-2030) [9], supported by UNICEF, focuses on "social inclusion" to integrate youth into local governance.

• UNESCO’s Vision for Yemen

UNESCO is transitioning from emergency aid to "System Resilience." The 2024-2030 Education Sector Plan focuses on:

• Alternative Pathways: Remedial programs like "My Right to Learn" for 400,000 children.
• Qualifications Passport: Recognizing the prior learning of 4.5 million internally displaced persons (IDPs).
• EMIS Integration: Activating Education Management Information Systems for data-driven policy.
• AI and Global Challenges

While physical schools are damaged, AI tools like ChatGPT used by 78.9% of tech-savvy Yemeni students provide "classrooms without borders." Yemen requires a national framework for "AI in Education" to bridge the teacher shortage rather than widening the digital divide between urban and rural areas.

Yemen faces a paradox: while the world enters a "Great Divergence" due to tech gaps, Yemen is in the embryonic stages of digital policy [10]. Global challenges include brain drain and high cloud computing costs [11], while local hurdles involve dilapidated telecom networks and a lack of national AI legislation [12].

Strategic Recommendations for Empowerment

• Education: From Survival to Resilience

Implement "Learning to Earning" Pathways: Bridge the gap between school and the market by integrating vocational training into secondary education, focusing on immediate employability skills (e.g., technical maintenance and digital literacy).

Institutionalize "Qualifications Passports": As recommended by UNESCO, finalize the recognition of prior learning for the 4.5 million displaced persons to ensure their past education is not lost during migration or relocation.

Teacher Stability Fund: Advocate for a sustainable mechanism—beyond temporary aid—to provide consistent incentives for the 170,000 teachers to prevent further brain drain from the public sector.

• Economic Empowerment: Leveraging the Digital Economy

National AI & Digital Literacy Framework: Yemen needs a "bottom-up" digital strategy. Instead of waiting for central policy, local NGOs and the private sector should standardize training for AI tools (like ChatGPT) to bridge the teacher shortage gap.

Financial Inclusion for Freelancers: Partner with regional financial intermediaries or digital wallet providers to solve the "payment problem." Establishing secure channels for youth to receive international payments is critical for the sustainability of the freelancing sector.

Incubating "Survival" Entrepreneurship: Shift from emergency grants to "Seed Capital + Mentorship" models that focus on green energy and local production, reducing dependence on imports and international aid.

• Civic Inclusion: From Consultation to Co-Management

Institutionalize Youth Seats: Move beyond "token" participation. Local governorates should establish mandatory youth seats in education planning committees to ensure the "lived experience" of students informs budget priorities.

Digital Civic Spaces: Support the development of "Co-working spaces" and digital learning communities. These act as physical and virtual hubs that reduce the isolation caused by regional fragmentation.

Gender-Specific Digital Access: Launch mobile "Tech-Hubs" or women-only digital training centers to address the 86.4% male dominance in the digital space, focusing on roles that can be performed remotely from home.

Conclusion

The report indicates that Yemen's future does not lie in waiting for the total cessation of conflict, but rather in building youth resilience starting from this very moment. By focusing on digital skills, alternative learning pathways, and financial inclusion, Yemen can transform its "youth bulge" from a point of social pressure into a genuine engine for national recovery.

In this report, we recommend building the capacity of local government entities to develop localized strategies—complete with monitoring, evaluation, and financing frameworks—to ensure sustainability within the education support sector. This sector serves as the backbone for bolstering the local economy and empowering the youth.