The 10-point plan is an ambitious plan developed by a team of reformers within the Yemeni government. Although it has been in the works since 2008, the plan has gained considerable momentum early in 2010, and enjoyed support from the highest levels of government. The Ten Point have been referred to favourably by Barack Obama (in a letter to President Saleh in the fall of 2009), and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and British Foreign Secretary David Miliband at the London Conference in January 2010.

The Resonate! Yemen initiative was able to get support from Mr. Jalal Yaqoub, Yemen’s Deputy Minister of Finance, who is one of the key individuals involved in developing and implementing the plan. Mr. Yaqoub shared Resonate’s belief in the importance of engaging youth in focused deliberations regarding the 10-point plan as the plan aims to shape the future of Yemen and will be at the center of the Government’s focus in the next two years.

Project activities:

Following a similar approach to President Obama’s “Issues Flyers”, Resonate! developed a one-page flyer for each of the 10 points in the plan that provides a brief background on the point, its objective, and the desired impact from implementing it. These flyers were approved by the Government’s technical committee and made available on Resonate’s website as well as being distributed in the events held.

Resonate! developed a survey to get the opinions of Yemeni youth on the plan and its chances of success. The survey is available on Resonate’s website and was also distributed in the debate sessions held during this project. A copy of the survey is attached in the Project Documentation section

Resonate! utilized Yoosk.com, a social media platform that enables direct conversations between public figures and the general public, to build a page for youth to ask direct questions to Mr. Jalal Yaqoub on the different areas of the plan. Mr. Yaqoub answered these questions by video responses that were posted on YouTube and Yoosk.com. Links are provided in the Project Documentation section.

Resonate! provided an area on the website for youth to post their ideas on how each of the points can be implemented on the ground. The technical committee was interested in getting the youth’s input in this area to take it into consideration when implementing the plan. There has been a number of creative ideas that youth submitted and the technical committee expressed their satisfaction with the quality of the ideas submitted.

Resonate! designed information, debate and deliberation sessions on the 10-point plan. In these sessions, the attendees get a brief background on the plan, followed by a debate between two (previously prepared) teams on the viability of the plan in reviving the Yemeni economy. The attending youth were then divided into smaller focus groups and each group was asked to agree on its top 3 priorities, and brainstorm implementation projects for these priorities. Each group then presented their projects to the wider audience.

 These sessions were held in Sana’a, Aden, and Hudeidah. Mr. Jalal Yaqoub, Deputy Minister of Finance was able to attend the Sana’a session and answered the attendee’s questions at the end of the session.  Resonate! planned to hold the sessions in Taiz and Mukalla, and hold a final presentation in Sana’a. Unfortunately, due to the current situation in Yemen Resonate! was not able to hold these sessions as youth lost the appetite to discuss Government strategies and programs given the surrounding environment.

 

Resonate! also hosted a workshop for youth active in NGOs in Yemen where they got a chance to interact directly with members of the Government’s Technical Committee. Youth groups in this workshop presented to the committee what they believe are the top priorities for Yemen, while the Technical Committee shared with the youth some of the challenges they are facing in implementing the plan and asked for the youth input and ideas on how these challenges can be overcome.

Supported by :

 Canadian Fund to Support Local Initiatives.

Outcomes

1- Demonstrate the value of engaging youth and soliciting their input in the design and implementation of public policy

2- Create a channel for the youth to interact directly with key decision makers in the Government

3- Build the capacity of the Yemeni youth to understand the intricacies and trade-offs of Government planning

4- Build a network of 120 young Yemenis in Sana’a, Aden, and Hudeidah who are interested in public deliberation and dialogue regarding public policy

 

5- Create partnerships with local and international NGOs whether in funding, designing, or implementing the project