US embassy cable - 03SANAA1397

C O N F I D E N T I A L SANAA 001397 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT PLEASE PASS TO USAID ANE/DAA, JAMES KUDNER 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/16/2013 
TAGS: EAID, PGOV, PINR, YM, ECON/COM, DOMESTIC POLITICS 
SUBJECT: NEW MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE WELCOMES USAID 
REPRESENTATIVE 
 
 
Classified By:  Classified by CDA Alan Misenheimer for reasons 1.5 b. a 
nd d. 
 
1. (C) Summary: Minister of Agriculture Hasan Omar Sowaid 
told Charge and USAID Representative that he welcomes USG 
assistance in the agriculture sector. Sowaid is the youngest 
Minister of the newly appointed Cabinet at 34, and new to the 
Sanaa political scene. However, with agriculture employing 
54% of Yemeni workers, and accounting for 15.3% of GDP, 
Minister Sowaid has the potential to positively impact the 
lives of many Yemeni citizens. End Summary. 
 
2. (U)  Charge called on newly-appointed Minister of 
Agriculture Hasan Omar Sowaid on June 15 to congratulate him 
on his appointment and introduce Douglas Heisler as the new 
USAID representative to Yemen.  Sowaid welcomed Charge and 
Heisler and briefly described the useful impact of previous 
USAID cooperation in Yemen.   Sowaid added that there was 
still more work to be done in the field of agriculture, and 
that donor assistance in the agricultural field has recently 
been declining. Any US assistance, he said, will be warmly 
received. 
 
3. (U) Heisler reviewed potential areas for cooperation, 
including production, processing and marketing of 
agricultural products.  Sowaid was receptive to USAID's offer 
of consultants, especially concerning his plans to reorganize 
the entire Ministry. 
 
4. (U) Charge also handed Sowaid an invitation from the 
Secretary of Agriculture to USDA's upcoming Conference and 
 
SIPDIS 
Expo on Technology in Sacramento.  Note: Due to the recent 
change of government, and change of Ministers, Sowaid is 
awaiting permission to attend from the Prime Minister. End 
Note. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------------- 
Bio Note: Farmer One Day, Minister of Agriculture the Next 
--------------------------------------------- ------------- 
 
5. (C) Minister Sowaid is a political neophyte and, at 34, he 
is the youngest Minister of the new Cabinet.  Long-time 
Embassy contact and prominent businessman Abdul Wahab Thabet 
told Pol/Econoff that Sowaid had approached his brother, 
Abdul Jalil Thabet, the GPC representative for the Hodeida 
Governorate, asking for a job in a local branch office of the 
Ministry of Agriculture.  Thabet stressed that this man had 
little ambition beyond farming, and had not sought anything 
higher than a simple office job.  However, after Sowaid had 
won his constituency and apparently through his good 
connections to the Thabets, Sowaid was appointed Minister. 
Thabet also implied that the Minister's appointment was also 
related to the geographical proportionment and that Sowaid's 
strong ties to Hodeida figured prominently in his being 
chosen as a Minister. 
 
6. (C) In his conversation with Charge, Sowaid stressed his 
background as a farmer, saying he had personally recived 
assistance from both the United States and Russia for his 
farm.  Sowaid was educated in Cairo, receiving his BA in 
Agricultural Sciences. He has not traveled to the United 
States. 
------------------------------------- 
Comment: Hope for Ministry of Agriculture 
------------------------------------- 
 
7. (C)  The Ministry of Agriculture was one of the most 
notoriously mismanaged Ministries in the former government. 
Sowaid seems open to new ideas and warmly accepted all offers 
of advice.  While still young, he has the backing of one of 
the most progressive commercial families in Yemen and will 
bring welcome new blood for agriculture in Yemen. 
MISENHEIMER