From Aden to Sanaa, Yemenis struggle to deal with soaring living costs

What the report says

Yemenis in government-held and Houthi-controlled areas are facing mounting hardship as fighting intensifies and the country’s economic crisis deepens, according to Al Jazeera. The report describes how unpaid or irregular public salaries, higher prices for basic goods and services, and a split banking system are squeezing households in Aden, Sanaa and Marib. It says the disruption of money transfers between different parts of the country has added another layer of difficulty for people trying to cover daily needs.

In Aden, shoppers and government workers interviewed by Al Jazeera described incomes that no longer cover food, rent, transport and healthcare. The report notes that families are buying smaller amounts of staples, cutting back on meat and sometimes relying on credit or loans to get through the month. A local retailer said customers are increasingly comparing prices carefully before purchasing essentials, while demand for non-essential goods has weakened.

The story also highlights Marib, where large numbers of displaced people have driven pressure on housing, jobs and public services. Residents there said pay disappears quickly, leaving families to choose between essentials such as water, milk and medicine. In Houthi-run Sanaa and other northwest areas, public employees have gone long periods without regular pay or have received only partial salaries. Al Jazeera says the broader context is more than a decade of war, which has damaged Yemen’s economy, reduced purchasing power and made basic living costs harder to manage.