To fail the economy is to fail the people – The National

To fail the economy is to fail the people – The National

To fail the economy is to fail the people. In the areas under their control, the Houthis have outlawed the use of new banknotes, which are printed by the central bank in Aden.. In the past month, people living in Houthis areas have had to queue for hours to exchange new banknotes for worn-out bills, at extortionate rates.. Endless queues have become a common sight at Yemen's currency exchange offices, but also at Lebanese banks.. The collapse of Lebanon's banking sector has affected not one but two countries. A shortage of American dollars, to which the Lebanese pound is pegged, ensued in November.. The Lebanese pound has lost half of its value on the black market.. Since the onset of Lebanon's financial crisis its has lost more than half of its value on the black market, reaching 1,200 pounds to the dollar.. Syria has been under economic sanctions for years, and Lebanon's banking sector was its only means to access the global economy.. Decades of war, corruption and financial mismanagement have weighed on the economies of Syria, Lebanon and Yemen..