[26/06/2026 03:32]

ADEN – SABA
The Ministry of Finance concluded yesterday evening here the activities of the National Technical and Applied Workshop on the Social Expenditure Observatory in Yemen (SEM).

The workshop was organized by the Ministry in cooperation with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia (ESCWA), with the participation of several national government entities and international partners.

The two-day workshop aimed to strengthen national capacities to activate the Social Expenditure Observatory and to link public budget data, actual implementation, and various funding sources with social expenditure dimensions and indicators.

This is intended to contribute to improving the efficiency, equity, and transparency of public spending, while supporting evidence- and data-based decision-making.

The workshop was held as part of the Ministry of Finance’s efforts to enhance transparency and efficiency in public financial management, align social spending with national priorities, and support financial reform and digital transformation efforts.

These initiatives aim to improve financial planning and strengthen fiscal sustainability in Yemen.

During the workshop, extensive technical discussions were held on Yemen’s macroeconomic and fiscal context, public financial management reforms, the structure of the national budget and priorities, and the methodology for linking national budget classifications and functional classifications with the dimensions and indicators of the Social Expenditure Observatory.

The discussions also covered the various areas monitored by the observatory, including education, health and nutrition, social protection, subsidies, agricultural support, housing and community facilities, labor markets and employment, arts, culture and sports, and environmental protection.

Participants also reviewed the data and indicators required to operate and regularly update the observatory.

A dedicated technical session focused on identifying social expenditure outside the framework of the state’s general budget, particularly spending beyond direct budget allocations.

This included independent and affiliated units, special funds, economic units, treasury funds, partner programs, and various financing sources.

This approach aims to enhance the comprehensiveness of the observatory’s data and provide a broader picture of social expenditure in Yemen.

The Ministry of Finance confirmed that the workshop achieved its main objectives by moving from the conceptual framework of the Social Expenditure Observatory toward initial practical steps related to data linkage, identifying data gaps, and agreeing on clear follow-up mechanisms to operate a pilot version of the observatory in the coming period.

At the conclusion of the workshop, participants agreed on several future workstreams, most notably strengthening the institutional framework of the observatory by appointing technical focal points from relevant national entities, reviewing the map of social expenditure data sources and gaps, adopting a methodology to link budget data and functional classifications with the observatory’s dimensions and indicators, and receiving sample data from international partners participating in the workshop in preparation for a pilot integration using actual data.

The participants also emphasized the importance of expanding technical coordination with ministries and sectoral entities that own relevant data, including those responsible for education, health, social protection, labor, statistics, planning, finance, and other sectors related to the observatory’s various dimensions.

The Main Committee for the Social Expenditure Observatory Project, established pursuant to the Minister of Finance’s Decision No. (75) of 2023, serves as the national leading and coordinating body responsible for following up on the workshop’s outcomes, in coordination with ESCWA, international partners, and national data-owning entities.

Participants stressed the importance of continued coordination between government institutions and partners, as well as data exchange through a unified framework, to ensure the establishment of an integrated national database for social expenditure.

Such a database would help track resources allocated to social sectors, assess their efficiency and impact, and direct them toward the groups and sectors most in need.

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