Yemen Monitor / Aden / Exclusive:
The Central Bank of Yemen in Aden issued an official letter stripping the Houthis of authority over the Social Fund for Development, based on a decision issued earlier this week by the Prime Minister. This significant step comes as part of the internationally recognized government’s efforts to assert its sovereignty over financial institutions and prevent the Houthi group from exploiting international funding.
The Central Bank of Yemen explained that a new director has been appointed for the Social Fund for Development, in accordance with the Prime Minister’s decision dated August 11, appointing Wissam Abdullah Mohammed Qaed as Acting Executive Director of the Fund.
The Central Bank’s letter included the cancellation of signing authority for the previous Houthi-affiliated signatories, and the adoption of the new director’s signature for all Fund transactions. This step has been expected for years and is considered essential to ensure that international aid and funding reach their intended recipients without control or interference from the armed group, which had been managing the fund from Sana’a for the past decade.
Houthi officials in Sana’a attempted to contact international donors, urging them to pressure the internationally recognized government to halt the measures, but the response was a complete refusal. Consequently, the group’s leadership ordered the suspension and shutdown of the Fund’s system.
In recent weeks, most commercial banks have relocated their headquarters from Sana’a to the interim capital, Aden, in compliance with orders from the Central Bank of Yemen, following the U.S.s’ decision to fully enforce its designation of the Houthis as a terrorist organization last March.
