I call on all people want to volunteer in health and Teaching English to contact me in Yemen?

Question

Please, send to : [e-mail]

Answer 1

And I call on all people who want to volunteer in health and teaching English who are tempted to contact this person to keep some things in mind:
-- this person offers no official name for his or her organization
-- if, in your correspondance with this person, an official name of this organization is offered, ask for the web address and the name of all of the senior staff and/or the board of directors
-- before you volunteer abroad for this or any organization, you need to get references for this organization; does UNDP Yemen know of it? Do they work with any international NGOs, like Oxfam?
-- before you volunteer abroad for this or any organization, you need to get answers to a lot of questions: what costs are you expected to cover yourself? (air transportation? local transportation? accommodation? food? security? equipment and materials to use in the service?) Will a translator be provided? Will you have to find housing yourself? If you're a woman, how will this NGO assure your safety in this very conservative society?

In short -- move with caution

Answer 2

I would strongly caution anyone who harbours the idea of doing 'good works', and thinks that Yemen would be a suitable starting point, to read "The Despairing Developer" by Timothy Morris, published by I.B. Tauris & Co., New York, 1991.

It is a diary of the disillusion and anger experienced by a dedicated and well intentioned man, who put tremendous effort into an aid project in Yemen. He found that not only his own project, but almost all others organised by outside agencies there were misdirected, and sometimes laughably misguided and mismanaged.

If you want to do some real good for the Yemen, sign up for one of the (excellent) Arabic language schools there. You will be helping the economy and getting a highly valuable qualification at the same time, very cheaply.

Yemen is a unique and splendid place to live and study.