Every support counts – GulfToday

Every support counts – GulfToday

Socotra is the largest of the four islands in the Socotra archipelago and is the territory near major shipping routes and is officially part of Yemen. The Yemeni crisis began with the 2011–12 revolution against President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who had led Yemen for more than three decades (33 years). The people of Yemen need humanitarian aid desperately to lift them out of their dire conditions and this is where the UAE has rushed in to help — tremendously (“$110m UAE assistance boosts Socotra’s economic growth,” Gulf Today, August 1). The UAE’s aid helped restore Socotra’s airport, enabling it to serve the process of development and facilitating transport to and from the island. The assistance given by the UAE over six years amounted to $110 million. The aid has helped dramatically improve living conditions of the people of Socotra. According to Wikipedia in 2004, it became attached to the Hadhramaut Governorate, which is much closer to the island than Aden (although the nearest governorate was the Al Mahrah Governorate). In 2013, the archipelago became its own governorate: Socotra Governorate. The UAE’s aid helped restore Socotra’s airport, enabling it to serve the process of development and facilitating transport to and from