LocationsFrom relief to resilience: Empowering rural Yemeni women through integrated economic support
March 7, 2026
Dunia’s journey is an inspiring story of driving resilience through digital inclusion and women-led businesses in some of Yemen’s most vulnerable communities.
Awareness sessions for mothers are part of the Cash for Nutrition programme.
Dunia is a business owner. She is a respected role model in her community. She is a mother who understands the health needs of her children – and has the means to provide for those needs. But her life wasn’t always like this. An integrated approach that moves people away from aid and into self-sufficiency means Dunia is no longer one of the stark statistics representing rural Yemeni women.
Yemen is a country where malnutrition – once considered an emergency – has evolved into a prolonged crisis. The World Health Organization estimates that 2.3 million Yemeni children under five need treatment for acute malnutrition. A further 1.3 million pregnant and nursing mothers suffer from malnutrition.
These challenges have a broad and lasting impact. Hardship drives children out of school and malnutrition leaves potentially irreversible marks on cognitive and physical development – putting an entire country’s economic future at risk.
For Dunia and her children, the path out of this cycle came from a new way of helping those in need – an approach designed to turn the multiple, complex causes of malnutrition and poverty into lasting change.
Rural women: Navigating challenges and constraints
Across Yemen, rural women play a crucial role for the care of their families. But economic and social barriers often prevent them from earning the income needed for their children’s healthy development. Many lack education and training, with little access to essential financial tools, such as savings accounts, e-wallets or small business loans. This exclusion not only restricts their ability to make informed financial decisions but also leaves their families vulnerable to the economic shocks and food insecurity that are all too common across the country.
This is the situation that Dunia, a mother of three from Al-Mawasit district in Taiz Governorate, found herself in. With her husband working sporadic day jobs, the family lacked a stable income. Their struggle to meet basic needs had a huge impact on her daughter, Haya.
“Haya’s health deteriorated because of poor nutrition and my lack of knowledge about proper hygiene,” explains Dunia, adding that she had started her daughter on solids at just three months. “She became very weak, lost her appetite and often fell ill because her immune system was weakened.” Caring for Haya became a constant worry that left little room to plan for the family’s future
Dunia takes care of her daughter, Haya, who suffered from malnutrition in Al-Mawasit in Taiz Governorate, Yemen.
With support from the World Bank’s International Development Association, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Yemen along with its national partner, the Social Fund for Development (SFD), are seeking to break the cycle of malnutrition through a project that combines complementary activities: conditional cash transfers provide immediate support for children with malnutrition and encourage mothers to attend health education sessions; and village savings and loan associations (VSLAs) build long-term economic resilience for women.
This approach ties the urgent fight against malnutrition to the role of women in rural communities, the need for greater household resilience, and the development of sustainable investment in human capital.
For the immediate challenge of childhood malnutrition, Cash for Nutrition is key, and for Dunia, this marked a turning point in her daily life. “I benefited greatly from the cash assistance,” she says. “It allowed me to diversify my food choices. All my children, including Haya, are eating better.” As worries eased a little and her confidence grew, Dunia also managed to save some of the money she received from the project, allowing her to look to the future.
Harsh conditions made it increasingly difficult for Dunia to provide proper nutrition for her daughter.
These small savings allowed Dunia to make real change. She joined her local VSLA – one of a network of community lending groups that, through small monthly contributions, foster solidarity and give members access to financing for their own businesses. Women like Dunia are trained in everything from project planning and feasibility studies to vocation in order to secure business success.
The local VSLA became an opportunity of self-reliance for Dunia. “I chose beekeeping as a business because that fits our rural environment, does not require much capital and feeds into an existing demand. I received funding from the association, while an SFD specialist taught me everything about beekeeping,” she explains. “I now have a relatively stable income. I can cover my family’s basic needs, buy my children’s school supplies and medicine and repay the loan. My next plan is to start saving for emergencies, while I grow my business.”
With the funding she received from VSLA, Dunia began her beekeeping business.
E-wallets: a crucial step to success
Even with the right business training, geographical and social barriers continue to limit rural women’s opportunities. E-wallets change that. By enabling secure and private financial transactions, they help women grow both confidence and autonomy around money. These tools allow women to monitor their income in real time, make transfers and reduce the time and costs associated with collecting or sending money – essential elements to independence. “I receive payments from customers and purchase necessities through my e-wallet without having to leave home or travel long distances,” says Dunia. “This has saved me time and effort – and reduced the risks around travel.”
From cash for nutrition and health education to VSLAs, micro-enterprise support and e-wallet services, it is the combination of interventions that has created a real empowerment pathway for rural Yemeni women like Dunia.
Using the e-wallet strengthens Dunia’s financial management skills.
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