Rural Livelihood Assessment in the Mountain Areas of Yemen

Abstract

Poverty is considered by several scientists and researchers as results of a set of natural and human factors, domestic policies and external factors that come together to create an environment conducive to the occurrence and spread of poverty and the increase in its severity. The Mountain Terraces Project (MTP) in Yemen has the aim of poverty reduction by improving rural livelihoods and increasing the chances of maintaining mountain terrace land. The overall objective of the research project is to development of decision-support tools, which could allow policy makers to understand farmers’ investment behavior and analyze the policy and institutional options that could assist in reversing terrace degradation, with a view to improving natural resource management, food security and income levels of rural households in the highlands of Yemen. The farming systems dominated in the Mountain Terraces in Yemen is “Highland Mixed Farming System”. This system is the most important in the NENA Region (FAO, 2001) in terms of population. There are two subsystems; one dominated by rainfed cereal and legumes plus tree crops on terraces, while the second is based on livestock on communally managed lands. Poverty is extensive, as markets are often distant, infrastructure is poorly developed and the degradation of natural resources is a serious problem. The project attempts to use community-based integrated natural resources management research approach, which involves the use of participatory research methods in problem identification and technology development, generation of direct benefits to farmers in a short time horizon and linking with development