Jeddah — Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman has approved the opening of consular affairs office in Jeddah of the Kingdom's embassy in Sanaa and the consulate in Aden, Saudi Ambassador to Yemen Mohammed Al-Jaber announced on Wednesday. The Jeddah consular office will issue visas. The service offices accredited by the embassy in Sanaa and the consulate in Aden will receive passports and documents and send them to the consular affairs office in Jeddah. Al-Jaber said the King's approval is an extension of the keenness of the leadership and the government of the Kingdom to support the brethren in Yemen. It also emphasizes the importance of providing services and facilitating procedures for all segments of the Yemeni people. Al Jaber said the Saudi embassy in Yemen and its consulate have completed all preparations to receive applications of Yemeni citizens to complete visa procedures without delay. Yemen recovery and reconstruction Saudi Arabia hosted in Riyadh on Wednesday the preparatory meeting on recovery and reconstruction in Yemen in the presence of Yemeni Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid Bin Daghr. The meeting reviewed the readiness of donor countries and regional and international organizations in extending financial support in Yemen's recovery and reconstruction. The meeting follows a preparatory meeting held with the World Bank in Washington on April 23 to immediately address the severe food crisis in Yemen, in addition to fulfilling financial commitments of nations and organizations in supporting the war-torn country. Minister of Finance Muhammad Al-Jadaan praised the commitment to work to help the Yemeni people regain their decent life. Jadaan said that he was looking forward to having this meeting reach a common vision on what can be done to respond immediately to the food crisis in Yemen. World Bank's Vice President for the Middle East and North Africa Hafez Ghanem expressed the Bank's readiness for partnership with all to provide support and assistance to the Yemeni people. Minister of Planning and International Cooperation of Yemen Mohammed Al-Saadi said that the overall security, political and humanitarian situation in Yemen due to the coup against legitimacy has deteriorated sharply. Economic growth shrank by about 34% in 2015 and many economic activities stopped. He said that poverty increased by more than 60% among the population with about 16 million people suffering from hunger and more than 50% of the population suffering from food crisis and the lack of basic services. He said that 22 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance.
