The Government of Yemen - The World Countries

Yemen - Government

Based on the etymolgy of Yemen, it was name derivation remains unclear but may come from the Arab term "yumn" (happiness) and be related to the region's classical name "Arabia Felix" (Fertile or Happy Arabia); the Romans referred to the rest of the peninsula as "Arabia Deserta" (Deserted Arabia). The Government system in this country is the in transition type and the different Administrative divisions includes: 22 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Abyan, 'Adan (Aden), Ad Dali', Al Bayda', Al Hudaydah, Al Jawf, Al Mahrah, Al Mahwit, Amanat al 'Asimah (Sanaa City), 'Amran, Arkhabil Suqutra (Socotra Archipelago), Dhamar, Hadramawt, Hajjah, Ibb, Lahij, Ma'rib, Raymah, Sa'dah, San'a' (Sanaa), Shabwah, Ta'izz

National symbols

Golden eagle; national colors: red, white, black.

The flag

The National flag of Yemen has three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black; the band colors derive from the Arab Liberation flag and represent oppression (black), overcome through bloody struggle (red), to be replaced by a bright future (white).

note: similar to the flag of Syria, which has two green stars in the white band, and of Iraq, which has an Arabic inscription centered in the white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt, which has a heraldic eagle centered in the white band

The National Anthem

Title	"al-qumhuriyatu l-muttahida" (United Republic)
Lyric/music	Abdullah Abdulwahab NOA'MAN/Ayyoab Tarish ABSI

note: adopted 1990; the music first served as the anthem for South Yemen before unification with North Yemen in 1990

More about the government of Yemen

Constitution
Date of Independence	22 May 1990 (Republic of Yemen was established with the merger of the Yemen Arab Republic [Yemen (Sanaa) or North Yemen] and the Marxist-dominated People's Democratic Republic of Yemen [Yemen (Aden) or South Yemen]); notable earlier dates: North Yemen became independent on 1 November 1918 (from the Ottoman Empire) and became a republic with the overthrow of the theocratic Imamate on 27 September 1962; South Yemen became independent on 30 November 1967 (from the UK)
National holiday	Unification Day, 22 May (1990)
Legal system	mixed legal system of Islamic (sharia) law, Napoleonic law, English common law, and customary law
International law organization participation	has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; non-party state to the ICCt
History	Adopted by referendum 16 May 1991 (following unification); note - after the National Dialogue ended in January 2015, a Constitutional Drafting Committee appointed by the president worked to prepare a new draft constitution that was expected to be put to a national referendum before being adopted; however, the start of the current conflict in early 2015 interrupted the process
Amendments	Amended several times, last in 2009
Citizenship
Citizenship by birth	no
Citizenship by descent only	the father must be a citizen of Yemen; if the father is unknown, the mother must be a citizen
Dual citizenship recognized	no
Residency requirement for naturalization	10 years
Executive Branch
Chief of state	Chairperson, Presidential Leadership Council Rashad Muhammad al-ALIMI, Dr. (since 19 April 2022)
Head of government	Prime Minister Ahmad Awad Bin MUBAREK (since 5 February 2024)
Cabinet	24 members from northern and southern Yemen, with representatives from Yemen's major political parties
Elections/appointments	formerly, the president was directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 7-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 21 February 2012 (next election NA); note - a special election was held on 21 February 2012 to remove Ali Abdallah SALIH under the terms of a Gulf Cooperation Council-mediated deal during the political crisis of 2011; vice president appointed by the president; prime minister appointed by the president
Election results	Abd Rabuh Mansur HADI (GPC) elected consensus president
Legislative branch
Description	Bicameral Parliament or Majlis consists of: Shura Council or Majlis Alshoora (111 seats; members appointed by the president; member tenure NA) House of Representatives or Majlis al Nuwaab (301 seats; members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 6-year terms)
Elections	Shura Council - last appointments NA (next appointments NA) House of Representatives - last held in April 2019 (next to be held in NA)
Election results	Percent of vote by party - GPC 58%, Islah 22.6%, YSP 3.8%, Unionist Party 1.9%, other 13.7%; seats by party - GPC 238, Islah 46, YSP 8, Nasserist Unionist Party 3, National Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party 2, independent 4; composition - men 245, women 0, percent of women 0%
Judicial branch
Highest court(s)	Supreme Court (consists of the court president, 2 deputies, and nearly 50 judges; court organized into constitutional, civil, commercial, family, administrative, criminal, military, and appeals scrutiny divisions)
Judge selection and term of office	Judges appointed by the Supreme Judicial Council, which is chaired by the president of the republic and includes 10 high-ranking judicial officers; judges serve for life with mandatory retirement at age 65
Subordinate courts	Appeal courts; district or first instance courts; commercial courts
Diplomatic representation in the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador Mohammed Abdullah Mohammed AL-HADHRAMI (since 7 June 2022)
Chancery	2319 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
Telephone	[1] (202) 965-4760
FAX	[1] (202) 337-2017
Email address and website	[email protected] https://www.yemenembassy.org/
Diplomatic representation from the US
Chief of mission	Ambassador Steven H. FAGIN (since 1 June 2022); note - the embassy closed in March 2015; Yemen Affairs Unit currently operates out of US Embassy Riyadh
Embassy	Previously - Sa'awan Street, Sanaa
Mailing address	6330 Sanaa Place, Washington DC 20521-6330
Telephone	US Embassy Riyadh [966] 11-488-3800 previously - [967] 1 755-2000
FAX	US Embassy Riyadh [966] 11-488-7360
Email address and website	[email protected] https://ye.usembassy.gov/
National heritage
Total World Heritage Sites	5 (4 cultural, 1 natural)
Selected World Heritage Site locales	Old Walled City of Shibam (c); Old City of Sana'a (c); Historic Town of Zabid (c); Socotra Archipelago (n); Landmarks of the Ancient Kingdom of Saba, Marib (c)