Roads are a Lifeline Contributing to Advancing Development

More than 60% of roads linking urban areas have been affected triggering disruption of the mobility of individuals and vehicles and of access to local services such as markets, hospitals and schools

The road sector has suffered considerable damage due to the conflict. The conflict has caused massive destruction of major roads and bridges in Yemen’s main cities such as Sana’a, Aden, Taiz, Al-Hodeida, Sa’ada and Amran. According to the Dynamic Needs Assessment by World Bank, more than 60% of roads linking urban areas in Sa’ada and Taiz have been damaged. The destruction of urban roads has affected the movement of people and access to local services, including markets, hospitals and schools.

Prior to the ongoing conflict, Yemen’s road sector had grown from about 5,000km in 1990 to 16,000km as of 2014.

Today, a large part of the main roads have been damaged, particularly the roads linking the major cities. The major challenges snagging the road sector include a shortfall in funding and financial budgets in addition to the additional costs to rebuild the roads destroyed by the ongoing conflict.

With funding from the World Bank Group’s International Development Association (IDA), UNOPS is implementing the Yemen Integrated Urban Services Emergency Project to rehabilitate major and secondary urban roads, including roads at the entrances of cities. The activities of the urban roads project, which are being implemented in partnership with the Roads Maintenance Fund Implementation Unit, include pothole and cracks repair, patchwork, asphalt decay maintenance, road safety improvement and road intersection rehabilitation.

46 road rehabilitation projects  are being implemented in 8 cities 

As of October 2019, with a total of US$ 36,143,417, more than 134 km of urban roads have been rehabilitated through the 18 projects in Sana’a and Aden. There are some 23 projects under implementation in Sana’a, Aden, Mukalla, Zinjibar, Sa’ada, Dali, Amran and Dhamar.

This sub-component will contribute to increasing mobility and access to services, including support for the economic recovery and improved road safety. UNOPS has selected the activities based on priority needs in consultation with the Implementation Unit of the Road Maintenance Fund, the respective local authorities (at the areas / districts level) and the communities concerned. Each contract for rehabilitation works seeks to maximize the use of manual labor with the view to uphold job creation at the local level.

A success model to follow “Rehabilitation project of the western entrance to Sana’a City”