ABSTRACT
From the point of view of Ottoman officialdom in Constantinople, a broad spectrum of reform programmes and economic projects were needed to bring Yemen up to the level of development already reached in other provinces of the empire. The recommendations of the Reform Committee of 1898 reflect this short-term military approach, although their charge was a far broader one. Military forces were to be concentrated on the Zaidi tribes and regions influenced by the Imam. The Memduh Commission was quick to recognize that most of the problems of government arose from the general poverty of the population, and therefore that the primary need was for economic development. To increase agricultural production, a team of agriculture-training experts was proposed. There was more to this experience than the ability to direct modern artillery or drive an automobile. Finally, there was also the matter of changed attitudes towards the world, towards knowledge and the potentialities of man.
