UK raises aid to Yemen to fight poverty
Source: Reuters
LONDON, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Britain said on Wednesday it would sharply increase development aid to Yemen, the Arab world's poorest country whose government is an ally in Washington's war on terror. Britain's pledge of 117 million pounds ($222 million) in aid over the next four years came as an international donors' meeting opens in London on Wednesday that aims to raise up to $5 billion to fight poverty in Yemen. The British government said it hoped its pledge would encourage wealthy Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, which are attending the two-day conference, to increase support for Yemen. The rise in British aid from 10 million pounds this year to 50 million pounds by 2011 will make Britain the European Union's leading aid donor to Yemen, British officials said. Yemen, the ancestral home of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, has cracked down on the group to try to counter its image in the West as a haven for militants. The British aid is aimed at fighting poverty in Yemen and not the war on terror, but poor people are more likely to turn to militant groups, one British official, who declined to be identified, said. The aid will be spent on providing better basic services, including education for girls, creating more private sector jobs for the poor and helping make the government more accountable.
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