THE PEOPLE'S DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF YEMEN

Abstract

The population of the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen grew from 992,000 in 1950 to 1.7 million in 1975, and the total fertility rate has remained relatively constant at 7 since 1950. The Government has not adopted a population policy per se, but has included sectoral policies that have implications for the size, growth, composition, and distribution of the population. The Government maintains that population issues should be viewed comprehensively within the framework of economic and social development. Measures to achieve economic growth, combined with the expansion of health, education, cultural, and social services, as well as the eradication of illiteracy and the emancipation of women, are expected to have a major impact on the society's demographic structure. The Government's main concern with regard to population growth is a reduction in morbidity and mortality. The rate of growth is projected to increase from 2.7% in 1980-85 to 2.9 in the year 2000, at which point it should begin to decline. The crude death rate is presently 18.8/1000 and is expected to drop to 13.1/1000 by 2000. Infant mortality stood at 138/1000 in 1980-85. Morbidity and mortality are unacceptably high among infants, children, nomads, and rural residents. Priorities for the health sector include the development and expansion of health services, intensive preventive health care for mothers and children, development of a safe drinking water system, nutrition and health education campaigns, and training of health personnel. Measures that are expected to decrease fertility include family planning education, an expansion of facilities to rural areas, and improvements in the status of women. Family planning services are freely available from maternal and child health centers, mainly in urban areas. A mass literacy campaign seeks to increase the female literacy rate to 90%, and women's participation in wage labor is being encouraged. A further goal of population policy is to modify spatial distribution through rural development and agriculture collectivization.