Tensions with Yemen over fishing rights in the Red Sea flared up in 1995 and again in 2002, and Eritrea ’ s difficult relations with other nations could hamper further development of the industry.

Yemen ’ s latest census, conducted in December 2004, reported a population of 19. 72 million persons, reflecting an average annual population growth rate of more than 3 percent.

Yemen ’ s population has more than doubled since 1975 and has grown approximately 35 percent since the 1994 census, making Yemen the second most populous country on the Arabian Peninsula.

According to the United Nations, Yemen ’ s population in 2005 was 27. 3 percent urban and 72. 7 percent rural ; population density was 40 persons per square kilometer.

Yemen ’ s population is predominantly young.

Since unification, the economy has been forced to sustain the consequences of Yemen ’ s support for Iraq during the 1990 – 91 Persian Gulf War: Saudi Arabia expelled almost 1 million Yemeni workers, and both Saudi Arabia and Kuwait significantly reduced economic aid to Yemen.

The 1994 civil war further drained Yemen ’ s economy.

In 1997 the International Monetary Fund ( IMF ) approved two programs to increase Yemen ’ s credit significantly: the enhanced structural adjustment facility ( now known as the poverty reduction and growth facility, or PRGF ) and the extended funding facility ( EFF ).

In the ensuing years, Yemen ’ s government attempted to implement recommended reforms — reducing the civil service payroll, eliminating diesel and other subsidies, lowering defense spending, introducing a general sales tax, and privatizing state-run industries.

In late 2005, the World Bank, which had extended Yemen a four-year US $ 2. 3 billion economic support package in October 2002 together with other bilateral and multilateral lenders, announced that as a consequence of Yemen ’ s failure to implement significant reforms it would reduce financial aid by one-third over the period July 2005 through July 2008.

A key component of the US $ 2. 3 billion package — US $ 300 million in concessional financing — has been withheld pending renewal of Yemen ’ s PRGF with the IMF, which is currently under negotiation.

In November 2006, at a meeting of Yemen ’ s development partners, a total of US $ 4. 7 billion in grants and concessional loans was pledged for the period 2007 – 10.

At present, despite possessing significant oil and gas resources and a considerable amount of agriculturally productive land, Yemen remains one of the poorest of the world ’ s low-income countries ; more than 45 percent of the population lives in poverty.

Yemen ’ s defense budget, which in 2006 represented approximately 40 percent of the total government budget, is expected to remain high for the near term, as the military draft takes effect and internal security threats continue to escalate.

Yemen ’ s military is divided into an army, navy, and air force.

In 2001 Yemen ’ s National Defense Council abolished the existing two-year compulsory military service, relying instead on volunteers to fill posts in the military and security forces.

Yemen ’ s paramilitary force has about 71, 000 troops.

This low number is attributed to the high cost of computer equipment and connections in combination with the population's low level of income, as well as to the restricted bandwidth available on Yemen ’ s outdated telephone network.

The cost of running a landline or owning a mobile telephone is out of reach for most of Yemen ’ s poor population, resulting in very low telephone usage rates — 3. 9 fixed-line subscribers and 9. 5 mobile subscribers per 100 persons in 2005.

In August 2005, the government awarded a contract to a joint venture between China Mobile and a group of Yemeni investors to take a 55 percent stake in Yemen ’ s third mobile network ; the government will retain a 25 percent share.

Yemen recently placed an order for TOR air defence systems, which will be far more advanced than the current air defense systems in place.

Yemen is a signatory to various international agreements on agricultural commodities, commerce, defense, economic and technical cooperation, finance, and postal matters.

The same year, the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen ( North Yemen ), which had already signed a defense pact with Egypt, joined with the new state in 1958 in a loose confederation called the United Arab States.

Specialized GRC publications include Araa Magazine, an independent magazine about social, defense and security issues in the Gulf ; Yemen Studies, a peer reviewed bilingual academic series about Yemen and Yemen-GCC relations ; and the GRC Newsletter.

After spending time as an officer in the British Army ( he served with the Parachute Regiment in Aden, Yemen ), and then racing in various series with an AC Cobra and a Chevron, Purley raced in Formula Three with some success including three wins at Chimay between 1970 and 1972.

He was born in Yemen, then under Ottoman control, then spending time as an editor in India before returning to the then nascent Kingdom of Saudi Arabia where he was head of the main library in Mecca.

He remained there for the bulk of the next three decades, spending some time in Delhi in the 1380s, and finally leaving Mecca in the mid-1390s to return to Baghdad, Shiraz ( where he was received by Timur ), and finally travelling to Ta ' izz in modern Yemen.

This haplogroup, rare in Europe, has its highest concentration in Ethiopia and in the Near East ( Jordan, Yemen ).

A 2008 New York Times report claims that Yemen has over 1 million of these discriminated and ostracized Al-Akhdam people, that is about 5 percent of Yemen population.

Eritrea also has very tense relations with all of its neighbors: Sudan, Ethiopia, Yemen, Somalia and Djibouti.

Its advantages are most pronounced when the receiving country applies unprofitable exchange rate regulations ( as has been the case for many typical receiving countries such as Pakistan or Egypt ) or when the banking system in the receiving country is less complex ( e. g. due to differences in legal environment in places such as Afghanistan, Yemen, Somalia ).

The UNCCD has 194 country Parties: Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Andorra, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Azerbaijan, The Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belarus, Belgium, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Botswana, Brazil, Brunei Darussalam, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Canada, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, the People's Republic of China, Colombia, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Côte d ' Ivoire, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Denmark, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Estonia, Ethiopia, European Union, Fiji, Finland, France, Gabon, The Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, the Republic of Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kiribati, South Korea, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Federated States of Micronesia, Moldova, Monaco, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Niue, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Romania, Russian Federation, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, São Tomé and Príncipe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Somalia, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Thailand, Tajikistan, Tanzania, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Despite an increase of 14 years in the last decade, life expectancy at birth in Yemen has remained low compared with other developing countries — 60. 6 years for males and 64. 5 years for females, or 62. 5 years overall.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh has been head of state in Unified Yemen since 1990 ( since 1978 in North Yemen ) and was democratically elected in 1999.

As a consequence, for the past 10 years Yemen has relied heavily on aid from multilateral agencies to sustain its economy.

The number of military personnel in Yemen is relatively high ; in sum, Yemen has the second largest military force on the Arabian Peninsula after Saudi Arabia.

By 2012 Yemen now has 401, 000 active personnel.

Yemen has acceded to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and has stressed the need to render the Middle East region free of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction.

Eritrea has half, while Yemen has half.

Yemen has historically enjoyed good relations with Somalia, its neighbor to the south and fellow Arab League member.

The Himyarite Kingdom or Himyar ( in Arabic مملكة ح ِ م ْ ي َ ر mamlakat ħimyâr ) ( r. 110 BC – 520s ), historically referred to as the Homerite Kingdom by the Greeks and the Romans, was a kingdom in ancient Yemen.

As terrorism analyst Evan Kohlman points out, " While there have been a number of promising intelligence leads hinting at possible meetings between al-Qaeda members and elements of the former Baghdad regime, nothing has been yet shown demonstrating that these potential contacts were historically any more significant than the same level of communication maintained between Osama bin Laden and ruling elements in a number of Iraq's Persian Gulf neighbors, including Saudi Arabia, Iran, Yemen, Qatar, and Kuwait.

In short, though historically a part of Yemen since ancient times, it was annexed by Saudi Arabia. indeed, there was a strong treaty between King Abdulaziz and the people from Najran indicates conditions that have to be respected by the both sides.

South Arabia as a general term refers to several regions as currently recognized, in chief the Republic of Yemen ; yet it has historically also included Najran, Jizan, and ' Asir which are presently in Saudi Arabia, and Dhofar presently in Oman.