International Development Minister attends Yemen meeting

24 September 2010

International Development Minister Alan Duncan attended the Friends of Yemen meeting in New York today, which was co-chaired by UK Foreign Secretary William Hague

Foreign Office Minister Alistair Burt also attended the meeting, the aim of which was to build on international coordination since January 2010.

The Friends assessed progress made since the January meeting in London, agreed a course of action for future support to Yemeni reform and set a date for the next meeting in Riyadh. The Friends welcomed Yemeni commitment to the implementation of the recently agreed International Monetary Fund programme, to a lasting peace settlement in Sa’dah, and to an inclusive Yemeni-owned national dialogue process.

The Friends of Yemen renewed their commitment to working with the Government and the people of Yemen in order to tackle the significant challenges they face. The Friends agreed to meet again in Riyadh in early 2011 to assess progress and launch the Yemeni Development Plan for 2011 - 2015.

For more information and to read the communique from the meeting, please see the news article on the Foreign & Commonwealth Office website