Yemen swears in new cabinet in Riyadh, appoints three women ministers

Yemen’s new government was sworn in before Presidential Leadership Council Chairman Rashad al Alimi in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.

The state news agency Saba said Prime Minister Shaya al Zindani and other cabinet members took the constitutional oath on Monday.

On Friday, the presidential council announced the formation of a new government headed by Zindani, who also took the foreign affairs portfolio. The cabinet includes 34 ministers, including three women, following weeks of consultations in Riyadh.

The new government includes several ministers who served in the previous lineup: Information Minister Moammar al Eryani; Youth and Sports Minister Nayef al Bakri; Agriculture, Irrigation and Fisheries Minister Salem al Soqatri; Interior Minister Ibrahim Haidan; Water and Environment Minister Tawfiq al Sharjabi; Industry and Trade Minister Mohammed al Ashwal; Public Health and Population Minister Qassem Buhaibeh; and Justice Minister Badr al Aradha.

Women were awarded three portfolios in the new cabinet. Afrah Abdulaziz al Zouba was appointed minister of planning and international cooperation, a first in Yemen’s history.

Judge Ishraq Fadl al Maqtari was appointed minister of legal affairs, while Ahd Mohammed Salem Jaasous was named minister of state for women’s affairs.

The absence of women from the previous government had drawn local and international attention, amid repeated calls to empower women in political positions.

On January 28, the US Embassy in Yemen said it looked forward to the formation of a new government that included women.

Zindani was appointed premier on January 16 after the presidential council accepted the resignation of former Prime Minister Salem Saleh bin Breik.

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Source: TRT