The Challenges of Urban Transition in Yemen: Sana'a and Other Major Cities

Abstract

Although urbanisation remains low in Yemen --32% in 2010 -the 2000s were marked by strong urban growth in most regions, as well as by various changes that deeply affected Yemeni cities, economically, politically, and socially. After describing the current state of urbanism in Yemen, including the processes of urbanisation and the parts played by political and economic actors (local, national, and international), the paper examines the consequences of urban transformations for society by observing how Yemen's particular urban characteristics are adjusting to new forms of globalised urban development. It concludes that the assets, just as much as the limitations, of Yemeni cities, as well as their regional and international roles, should be highlighted as a reminder that the economic and political frames of these expanding cities are unstable, especially in the context of the 'Arab Spring', which has affected the whole country.