News: UAE partners with WHO to launch two-year initiative targeting child malnutrition crisis on Yemen’s Socotra Island. Socotra Island
About Socotra Island
- Location: It is a Yemeni island situated between the Guardafui Channel and the Arabian Sea in the Indian Ocean.
- It lies 380 km south of the Arabian Peninsula and 232 km east of the Horn of Africa near the Gulf of Aden.
- It is the largest island of the much larger Socotra archipelago.
- Ecological diversity: The Socotra archipelago has been dubbed the Galapagos of the Indian Ocean due to its ecological diversity and high rates of endemism.
- Endemic: 37% of Socotra’s 825 plant species, 90% of its reptile species and 95% of its land snail species do not occur anywhere else in the world.
- Important plant species are the Dragon’s Blood trees, frankincense, myrrh, and endemic aloes.
- Climate: It has a semi-desert climate with low annual rainfall.
- Recognition: In 2008, Socotra was recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
