Building peace through partnership: EU's support to the Peace Support Facility in Yemen
The Peace Support Facility provides an adaptable platform that responds to Yemen’s evolving peace and development priorities. It connects national institutions with local communities and supports initiatives that make peacebuilding efforts more inclusive and sustainable. Technical assistance and targeted interventions help translate peace commitments into tangible progress on the ground while reinforcing long-term recovery and institutional resilience.
The Facility has made significant contributions to advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda in Yemen. With support from the PSF, the Women Research and Training Centre at the University of Aden established a Peacebuilding Network that now includes around one hundred active members. The network promotes women’s participation in peace processes through training, research and community engagement, encouraging both women and men to contribute to dialogue and advocacy on gender equality and peace.
As Dr. Huda Ali Alawi, Director of the Women’s Research and Training Centre, explains, “We cannot achieve lasting peace without education. Education contributes to the psychosocial and cognitive development of communities. It allows communities to learn skills such as mediation and changes people’s behaviours for the better.” This vision captures how education and dialogue remain central to peacebuilding in Yemen and how the PSF’s support reinforces local institutions to lead that change.
Important progress has also been achieved within public institutions. A gender network has been established at Aden University to promote gender equality and awareness of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda. Six women have been appointed to decision-making positions in Aden’s Family Protection Department. In addition, a gender self-assessment working group has been created within police departments across eight districts of Aden to strengthen gender-responsive practices and support the implementation of Yemen’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security. One of the PSF’s communications activities in 2023 also included an advocacy campaign highlighting the importance of women’s inclusion in peace processes across Yemen.
Echoing this, Dr. Saeed Al-Qashbri, Associate Professor at the Women’s Research and Training Centre, notes, “When the educational system becomes more gender inclusive, more women will be able to reach decision-making positions. This contributes to the achievement of just and equal societies, thus the achievement of durable peace.”
The Facility’s work extends beyond advocacy and policy into areas that improve daily life and strengthen community trust. In Dhamar Governorate, for example, a new water network was installed with PSF support, providing clean water to more than four hundred households. Before the project, women and children often walked long distances to fetch water for their families. The new system has eased this burden, improved living conditions and reinforced stability within the community. In 2023, the Facility also launched a Small Grant Mechanism (SGM) to support six CSO initiatives in Marib, Taiz and Aden, addressing local challenges. These initiatives highlight the efforts of civil society organizations to equip young people with the skills needed for conflict mitigation and resolution.
The Peace Support Facility illustrates how international cooperation can translate into meaningful change within Yemeni institutions and communities, for all Yemenis. It shows that progress toward peace often begins at the local level, where improved trust, inclusion and access to basic services make stability possible. The Facility’s achievements, such as advancing women’s participation in the security sector, promoting gender equality in public life and improving essential services, demonstrate how gradual, locally rooted steps can rebuild confidence in governance and civic life.
Rather than functioning in isolation, the Peace Support Facility forms part of a wider European Union engagement in Yemen that links peacebuilding with governance reform and economic recovery. Together, these efforts contribute to a long-term vision of sustainable peace, where institutions are more responsive, communities are more resilient, and all Yemenis have a voice in shaping their country’s future.
The European Union continues to support initiatives that strengthen institutions, promote gender equality and foster inclusive development as the foundations for lasting peace. The Peace Support Facility stands as a clear example of how cooperation and shared vision can translate the aspiration for peace into tangible progress for the people of Yemen.
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