The importation of cheaper goods has caused many of the traditional crafts, along with their shops, to disappear. Buildings of the old city have fallen into disrepair because the need for annual maintenance is often disregarded. As a result, a new generation of builders lack the necessary skills to repair traditional buildings and consequently substitute modern and often inappropriate techniques. Those who initiated the campaign recognized the need not only to preserve and repair but also to revitalize the traditional way of life, which means creating centers of training for young workers while there are a few remaining masters of old building techniques still alive. In addition to architectural concerns, the campaign also includes social, commercial, educational, and economic projects.
Financing is provided by the Yemeni government with the continued help of foreign aid.
Through the efforts of this campaign, the international community has become aware of the need for a cooperative effort to preserve Sana'a's unique architectural heritage from the accelerated modernity overtaking all aspects of Yemeni life. While the international community is keen to implement its preservation ethic in Yemen, Yemen itself has yet to complete its infatuation with technology as an expression of modernity. Reappreciation of traditional values, as defined by preservation ethics, is a cyclical phenomenon whose time has come in many parts of the world. As much of the world was once infatuated with technology as a modern savior, many developing nations were introduced to these ethics in the name of foreign development. Though the introduction of foreign development to Yemen has greatly contributed to the destruction of its traditional architectural environment, Yemen has creatively adopted this modem vocabulary to express the symbolic language inherent in all Yemeni art forms.