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Yemen Rial
Yemen, or to give it its full title, the Republic of Yemen has the Yemeni rial for its official currency. Each rial is then divided into 100 fils, which are basically cents, however, the currency is actually issued in rials only since inflation has put paid to the use of fils.
The Central Bank of Yemen is responsible for circulating Yemeni rials and they issue the currency as both notes and coins. Coins are available as : 1, 5, 10 and 20 rials and notes as 50, 100, 200, 500 and 1000 rials.
The currency is denoted internationally by the letters YER.
History of the Yemeni Rial
The Yemeni rial is actually a very recent currency. The currency first became the Yemeni rial in 1993, when the fist coins were issued. Prior to this, the currency in use had been the Northern Yemeni rial and the Southern Yemeni dinar.
Yemen only became a unified country in 1990, when the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen united with the Yemen Arab Republic and the two countries became one. Initially they both used their existing currency, so the rial was used (the northern currency) and the dinar was used (the southern currency). But then in 1996, the dinar was withdrawn from circulation and only the rial was in use and this is now a Yemeni rial as opposed to a Northern Yemeni rial.
The rial has not fared well over the last few years and inflation is now hovering at around 20% which means that whereas the rial was once trading against the US dollar at about 12 rials to 1 US dollar, it is now worth significantly less.
Getting Hold of Yemeni Rials
Getting hold of Yemeni rials is actually a little bit difficult. There are ATM facilities in Sanaa the capital, but the main problem is that many will only accept cards that are on the visa network. In addition, even if you do find a cad that is on the visa network, you can also find that the ATM will not accept a foreign card, so you have to search around to find a machine that will actually take your card and this whole process can be quite time consuming.
Traveller's cheques, particularly prestigious ones, such as American Express, can be problematic since banks can often simply refuse to accept them.
The best way to get cash in Yemen is actually to take in US dollars or some euros and then exchange them. This means that you are having to carry cash around with you, which is not always a good thing. However, it is the only way to make sure that you have a good supply of rials when in the country. But for the sake of security it is always best to take in a combination of your debit and credit card, some traveller's cheques and some US dollars or euros.
This means that you will have various ways to get hold of cash.
Safety Issues
Yemen is not a safe country to visit unfortunately. As of 2008, most Western governments are advising their citizens that all non essential travel to Yemen should be postponed.
Yemen has really had a troubled past. It is located just south of Saudi Arabia and yet it is nowhere near as stable as Saudi Arabia. It is reputedly one of the earliest inhabited or civilised places on earth and according to legend/myth or truth, depending on your views, this is the spot where Noah's son chose to start his family, so it is steeped in ancient cultures.
Yet it has seen its fair share of troubles over the last few years, basically since the end of the Second World War and it was hoped that when the north and south actually unified, there would be peace in this troubled country. However this was not to be and the country descended into civil war in 1994. But even though peace was finally achieved, there is a feeling that civil war is only a few minutes away and it could break out at any time.
Terrorist groups have long since been active in the county and this is true, even today. It is suspected, but not proven, that al-Qu'aida forces are quite active in Yemen and that they have actually killed foreign nationals in Yemen in 2008. But these are not the only deaths that have been linked to al-Qu'aida, in 2007, there were other attacks as well.
It is suspected that al-Qu'aida will cay out terrorist attacks against Westerners in Yemen, simply to demonstrate their power. But as if al-Qu'aida were not enough, there are other groups that are active in Yemen as well. These include Houthi rebels that are again, anti Western and they have already targeted Westerners as being legitimate targets.
As a result of the security problems and the fact that most Western governments are saying that it is not really safe to visit, unless your journey is absolutely necessary, it is not a destination that you should choose, unless you can make sure that you have adequate protection. Whilst some people may think that it is a matter of choice as to whether or not you ignore governmental advice and just travel there anyway, in many ways it is not a matter of choice, because the more Westerners there are in the country, the higher the risk of an attack.
This means that by actually travelling to the country, you can raise the risk of a bomb going off etc and whilst this may be your own choice, if innocent bystanders get caught up in the blast, then this (obviously) is not fair on them, so there are issues about general responsibility and awareness.
Insurance Issues
If you travel to Yemen against governmental advice, then you need to make sure that you have got pretty good insurance. For a start you need to be aware that many insurance policies will not cover you for acts of terrorism, so if something happens and you are injured in an attack, you may find yourself responsible for paying for your medical bills and this may not be cheap, in fact, even with the rial being worth so little, it will still work out fairly expensive.
Next, something may simply just 'happen' to you when in the country i.e. not an act of terrorism, but you could have an accident etc. If advice is not to travel to that country, you may find that you insurers will simply turn round and say that you are not covered because you should not be there in the first place! So basically if you insist on travelling there find a Rolls Royce equivalent of insurance and then keep praying all the time you are in Yemen!
Yemen as Country
Yemen is actually a very beautiful country, despite its troubled past and it is one which, should it become stable again, will undoubtedly attract more and more travellers, since after all, Noah's son even thought that it was beautiful enough to live in.
It is an ancient country that is absolutely brimming with ancient sites that are just too plentiful to list. After a while you can even become jaundiced about dates, sniffing and thinking, only 3d century, since you will have seen so many things that actually pre-date Christianity.
Sana'a the capital, is said to date back to the 1st Century and again, is awash with ancient and historic buildings that are simply beautiful.
There are ancient mosques as well and you really have a sense that you are in a Muslim country.
Due to the fact that Yemen is still a developing country, it is far less modernised than Saudi Arabia or Oman, so not just do you have a sense of Islam but also that this is the 'real' Arabia, or rather Arabia as it used to be before they discovered Rolex watches and 4 x 4s.
In fact so prestigious is the history, that the centre of old Sana'a has actually been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site and has been such since 1984 and it is truly like going back in time.
Overview
Years of neglect and problems in terms of spending means that over the last twenty or thirty years, very little money has been spent on basic facilities, so there is very little infra-structure available for travellers in Yemen, particularly outside the capital.
This makes travel outside of the capital quite difficult and indeed it is in some ways impossible anyway, since if you want to travel outside of the capital, then you will need a travel permit and you can only get a travel permit, if you are going on an organised tour. Since there are so many security issues currently, it is unlikely that permits will be issued, so if you wanted to travel to Yemen, you would really only be able to see the capital and even then, you may find it quite restrictive.
Whether Yemen will ever settle down will only be demonstrated with time. Some optimists hope that Saudi Arabia and Oman will eventually get tired of the Yemeni problem and they will flex their muscles to try and bring some kind of resolution. But interfering in other country's problems is not the Islamic way, so this may take some time to come about, i.e. it will be done only as a last resort.
This means that in the interim, Yemen will have to go on experiencing the kind of problems and insecurity that it has seen over the last fifty or so years and the sad thing about it, is that if al-Qua'aida have got a foothold in Yemen, then the situation is unlikely to settle down as anti-Western feelings are whipped up to try and recruit even more terrorists and these people are disillusioned enough to be susceptible to being recruited.
If you are keen to travel to Yemen then you should keep an eye on what is happening in the country, so that you can become aware when it is safe again.
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