Fragmented Power, Access and Legitimacy: The Politics of Social Assistance in Yemen’s Conflict (2014–24)

This paper examines the politics and dynamics of social assistance in Yemen, where international humanitarian aid dominates support to conflict-affected populations. The landscape for social assistance provision in Yemen is bifurcated between areas controlled by the Government of Yemen and those by the de facto authority of the rebel Houthi movement, also known as Ansar Allah. The role of the Yemeni government in social assistance processes is limited and symbolic, with limited capacities for planning and oversight. In areas under Houthi de facto authority control, challenges for effective assistance include restricted access and mobility, especially for women, visa difficulties for international staff, and harassment and security threats for local staff, all of which impede direct engagement with on-the-ground realities and enable increased local authority intervention in needs assessment and aid distribution. In October 2024, the Houthis dissolved the second body they had created to control aid, the Supreme Council for the Management and Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and International Cooperation. Part of its functions were transferred to their internationally unrecognised Ministry of Foreign Affairs in an attempt to manoeuvre externally to ease pressure on the movement and restore the Houthis’ credibility. The Social Fund for Development (SFD) is one of the few entities able to work across the country, delivering World Bank-supported unconditional cash transfers to over 1.2 million people. Yet, a pattern of increasing Houthi interference has put the SFD’s relatively successful record under threat. Despite ongoing challenges, it is essential for international responses in Yemen to progress towards a more appropriate and sustainable approach that rebuilds and strengthens social protection systems. This shift towards nationally owned and directed social assistance requires stronger political commitment and collaboration, both locally and internationally. This report details several ways international actors can strengthen their commitments, including through investments in building and rehabilitating the technical, infrastructural and logistical capabilities of social assistance agencies in areas under the control of the Government of Yemen.