In Yemen, a formal education system has only been systematically developed since the end of the reign of the imams in the 1960s. Today the illiteracy rate stands at about 50 %; at 58 % it is particularly high among Yemeni women. Poverty and general mistrust of the education system have resulted in one of the lowest enrolment rates worldwide. At the same time, many children – especially girls – drop out of school before completing their basic education. Nevertheless, demand for education at all levels is growing quickly, both in the cities and in the countryside.

Building on the assistance it has already provided for the reform of basic education, German development cooperation has now embarked on a programme of support for secondary education, which is intended to improve the consistency and standard of schooling for pupils of grades 10 to 12. The German programme is coordinated with the multi-donor Secondary Education Development and Girls' Access Project. It is a comprehensive approach to education reform, involving both financial and technical cooperation. The support is essential if Yemeni students are to succeed in the prevailing labour market or enter into university education. At present, the quality of this sub-sector of education is poor. Students, employers and universities alike suffer the adverse effects of Yemen's inadequate secondary schooling. The main problems that need to be overcome are the poor quality of teaching, outdated methods, big class sizes and a lack of modern teaching materials.

To address these challenges, the Yemeni Government passed its National Secondary Education Development Strategy in 2007. This includes measures to enhance equality of access, particularly for girls. It also requires the development of tailor-made interventions that should reduce drop-out rates and the need for pupils to repeat classes.

The German programme is pursuing the following objectives:

• Primary school enrolment of all children of school age
• Equal education opportunities for girls and children in rural areas
• Higher internal efficiency and better quality of basic education
• Institutional capacity building at all levels
• Greater community participation in education
• Integrated construction and rehabilitation of school buildings

German development cooperation in the sector involves German Development Service (DED), GTZ, and KfW Entwicklungsbank. It includes advisory activities at all ministerial levels.