With indistinct sounds that resemble coded signals, the woman in her sixties—known among people as Al-Raymiyyah—directs the movement of her flock, guiding it through the crowded streets of the capital’s municipality, filled with cars, vehicles, and pedestrians. She does so with remarkable ease and fluidity, like a coordinated and disciplined team executing instructions precisely, all in the interest of keeping every member safe.
Urban mornings scented with the countryside, and rituals rooted in Bedouin life, begin with the Al-Raymi family and their flock of sheep, which they stubbornly hold on to in the heart of the city. For them, the animals represent the backbone of the family’s stability and its main economic lifeline.
The Complexities of Urbanization
The Al-Raymi family lives in northern Sana’a in a modest home with a small yard, most of which has been converted into a pen sheltering a flock of up to 15 sheep and goats.
For decades, Maryam Al-Raymiyyah has been responsible for herding the family’s animals. During this time, she has witnessed dramatic changes in both place and life in the Al-Jarraf area, which until not long ago was considered a sparsely populated suburb, rich with farmland and grazing areas.
Al-Raymiyyah recalls that Al-Jarraf and the northern neighborhoods of the capital once resembled rural areas, filled with agriculture, vineyards of grapes and pomegranates, and various fruit trees. Herding was easy and widespread. But rapid urban expansion and construction soon crept in, making animal husbandry increasingly difficult.
As green spaces diminished, Al-Raymiyyah adapted her herding methods. She no longer relied solely on uninhabited areas as she once did. Instead, she began frequenting areas near vegetable and fruit vendors, where spoiled produce is discarded, as well as locations where food waste is commonly thrown away.
She also tightened safety measures and carefully organized the movement of her flock between distant locations. Treating the animals as members of her own family, she gives each one a name and calls out to it if it strays, always vigilant about their safety.
Emergency Economy and Inherited Culture
Seeing sheep and goats crossing main and side streets in Sana’a is not unusual. The Al-Raymi family is just one of hundreds across the capital’s ten districts who continue to practice herding and cling to their livestock for both economic and cultural reasons.
Like herders in rural areas, the Al-Raymi family views sheep as financial assets—an emergency economy that provides protection and security, especially during illness, religious holidays, the month of Ramadan, and unexpected hardships.
There are no precise statistics on how widespread this phenomenon is in Yemeni cities, including the capital. However, agricultural census reports indicate that Yemen’s total livestock population reached nearly 19.4 million head in 2018. Livestock ranked second in agricultural GDP after crop production, contributing between 20% and 23%, making it a vital pillar for many families.
Notably, urban herding is not always driven by economic necessity. Many well-off families raise sheep and goats without relying on them for daily needs. For them, the animals represent an emotional attachment and a deeply rooted social tradition, especially among families originally from pastoral rural communities.
Typically, such families keep between three and seven sheep in small pens near their homes or on rooftops, partially relying on them for milk and Eid sacrifices.
A Different Kind of Alienation
Herding in urban areas is a form of alienation—a plant growing outside its natural habitat—surrounded by complexities and challenges. These challenges extend beyond the lack of grazing land and the high cost of fodder, which sometimes forces herders to sell part of their livestock just to feed the rest.
Conflicts with neighbors are common, often due to unpleasant odors and insect infestations.
In the case of the Al-Raymi family, neighbors frequently complain about bad smells and lice spreading into their homes. Yet they also recognize the family’s deep attachment to their animals and their reliance on them, treating the situation as a reality they accept and coexist with.
Al-Raymiyyah says that despite occasional complaints, she maintains strong relationships with her neighbors, exchanging mutual benefits. They provide her with leftover bread (hathawir) to feed the sheep, and she, in return, shares milk with them.
Theft is another major challenge for urban herders. Al-Raymiyyah explains that she faces attempted theft from time to time, recounting with sorrow the story of a fellow herder who was robbed after midnight and lost all 11 of his sheep in a single incident.
An Ignored Phenomenon
Urban herding is not limited to Sana’a. The practice exists across all Yemeni governorates, especially as waves of displacement caused by internal conflicts have pushed rural families—along with their livestock—into cities.
Despite the long-standing presence of herding in urban areas, the phenomenon has never been properly studied, quantified, or regulated. This is particularly significant as it poses challenges to government-led greening and beautification efforts, such as those carried out by the Cleaning and Improvement Fund, contributing to the degradation of green spaces and road medians.
