Monthly Program Updates - Jan 2019: Yemen Communities Stronger Together

The program is implemented by Global Communities, with funding from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). The program's primary objective is to support conflict mitigation and peacebuilding in Yemen. YCST has been working to finalize sub-agreements with governorates in the South, including Aden, Abyan, Lahj, and Taiz. The program has received approval from the Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MoPIC) and has been undertaking start-up activities, including fieldwork for the baseline assessment. Meetings were held with governorate officials to discuss concerns and finalize agreements. However, the agreement with Aden governorate is still pending due to internal conflict between the Director of Planning and the Vice Minister of MoPIC. YCST has also been working with the National Authority for Management and Coordination for Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Response (NAMCHA) in the North. Despite initial progress, NAMCHA has requested changes to the project objectives, approaches, budget, and fund allocation. As a result, YCST is operating on minimum required resources in Sana'a, taking into account the uncertainty surrounding the program's approval by NAMCHA. The program has made significant progress in staffing, with the Director of Finance and Administration (DFA) arriving in the country on January 2nd. Key national positions have been filled, including governorate coordinators, program managers, and community mobilizers. Local partners have also completed recruitments of their core staff. YCST has selected 20 staff members for PACE training in Amman, Jordan, which will take place from February 2nd to 23rd. The training is aimed at facilitating community-based facilitation skills, community mapping, community profiling, conflict analysis, and the Do No Harm. The participants will play an active role in facilitating the PACE process and training the rest of the team. The program has launched the recruitment process for stabilization staff, including a stabilization specialist and stabilization officers in Abyan and Taiz. YCST plans to kickstart stabilization interventions in the coming month, after receiving and reviewing the baseline study in Taiz and Abyan. In terms of security, IRC has suspended its operations in Mudiyah in Abyan governorate due to issues with community members. However, this suspension has not affected the operation of other organizations in Abyan governorate. The fieldwork for the baseline assessment has been completed in Abyan, Aden, and Lahj governorates. Data collection has also been completed in half of the locations in Taiz, but the field team is facing challenges related to shifting requirements from local authorities for granting access. The data collection in Taiz is expected to be completed on February 3rd. Reporting and reviews on the findings of the other three governorates are in process.