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Revving up hope: Solar-powered tuk tuks drive small business growth in Yemen

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Yemen
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UNDP
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Ali and Majed, from the Seiyun district in the Hadramout Governorate, both embody the spirit of resilience and persistence Yemenis have shown through eight years of war. Equipped with key knowledge, basic tools and required skills, they are now prepared to pave the way toward a bright and prosperous future.

In June 2022, through its Rapid Financing Facility (RFF) project, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) provided solar-powered tricycles (tuk tuks) for people whose livelihoods were negatively affected by COVID-19 and ongoing conflict in Seiyun district. Ali and Majed took advantage of the opportunity. Here are their stories.

Ali: Overcoming adversity

Ali, a 35-year-old father of one child, graduated with a diploma in vehicle mechanical engineering in 2005. But due to an ocular medical condition, he could only practice mechanical engineering for a few months.

The daily wage Ali earned was insufficient to cover his family’s needs. And because it depended on the need to build and distribute goods, the income was not steady.

One day, Ali overheard people speaking about UNDP’s solar tuk tuk programme. He sought more information from the local officials. “They handed me a flyer with the SOUL Organization’s (UNDP’s local implementing partner) contact details. After learning more, I registered online.”

Ali was one of 500 people selected to participate in the RFF training project (43 percent of whom are women) where they learned solar tuk tuk maintenance and business management, including sustaining and growing their micro-businesses as well as business proposal writing.

Ali was inspired to create and submit a micro-business proposal for the chance to receive a free solar tuk tuk to begin operations. He was overwhelmed when his plan was accepted.

With the additional capacity from the tuk tuks, Ali immediately began growing his delivery work. But he did not stop there – he has expanded his delivery services to include individual clients. “I wake up early every day to take and drop workers off at their employment. This secures a good monthly income for me in addition to other daily income.”

As the tuk tuks use an electric motor, a battery pack and a solar panel, they are part of an important effort in Yemen to reduce emissions and have a more social and economically viable way of transporting people. Ali sees the value in this for him, his community and for Yemen.

“I used to earn around 5,000 Yemeni Riyals (YER) [approximately US$5] a day when I was working as a daily wage earner. Now, I make between 20,000 and 30,000 YER [between $20 and $30] a day.”

Ali’s mechanical background, in addition to the maintenance training course he completed through UNDP, has also helped him work on and maintain his new tuk tuk. He has even created a WhatsApp group to support other tuk tuk owners.

Majed: Empowerment defeats displacement

Majed is a 45-year-old father of six who has been displaced from his home Taiz. “When I first arrived in Seiyun, I worked in a laundry for a couple of years,” he recalled.

The laundry had a small sewing shop for mawaz, a traditional Yemeni kilt worn by men. “I love mawaz and convinced the owner to allow me to learn through practice. It only took me a few months before I could sew a mawaz by myself,” he notes proudly.

Because of his passion and commitment to improve his economic situation, his friends and relatives gathered their funds to help him buy his own mawaz weaving loom.

“I can make around 30 mawaz a month. But with the high costs of materials and transportation, I could barely pay our monthly rent and provide the basic necessities for my children,” Majed said.

But once he completed the training and received a solar-powered tuk tuk, the transportation from his small home-based workshop to the city’s markets was seamless, saving him thousands of Riyals. And as Yemen often experiences shortages, long lines and high costs for fuel, Majed saves additional time and money with his tuk tuk.

Majed can now concentrate his efforts on his family and growing the business. He has even started to expand his income by occasionally transporting passengers, allowing him to save for a rainy day.