Access to water brings new era of hope
Access to safe water in the southern regions of Yemen has long been a significant challenge, and the impacts of climate change are exacerbating this issue, severely disrupting the social fabric of rural communities. Women and children are bearing the brunt of this struggle, embarking on long, difficult journeys to fetch scarce drinking water.
Mohammed, a leader in his community recalls recent times when access to water was not only a physical burden but a barrier to education and healthy living. He notes that families had to choose between buying expensive water from shops or risk getting sick by drinking water from local contaminated wells.
Abboud, another community leader, details how buying water placed unbearable financial burden on low-income communities. Hardworking villagers with limited resources, often faced a dire choice. They must either on a contaminated or salty water, or buy water from water vendors, trapped in a cycle. This predicament traps them in a relentless cycle of disease and hardship.
The change came through an intervention led by Medair and World Vision, says Moataz, WASH (Water, Sanitation and Hygiene) engineer at Medair. The project addressed not only the urgent need for drinking water but also the root causes of waterborne diseases. The installation of a 3,000-litre-per-day water desalination plant and the installation of four solar-powered water heaters have been revolutionary additions to the project, which serves almost 800 individuals at five locations in Lahj governorate.
This initiative, as Abboud notes, stands as a beacon of success in a region challenged by remoteness, absence of infrastructure and severely salinised groundwater.
“Life depends on the availability of clean, potable water. When water reached our communities, we felt a new life” continued Abboud.
“The project has become a resounding success in the remote region, far from the capital district, where bad roads and long distances commonly impede progress," acknowledges Mohammed. "Despite these challenges, the committed teams from World Vision and Medair have tirelessly navigated every hurdle to bring relief to the people. They have provided much-needed water to those who were suffering greatly from the scarcity and enduring other hardships.
Mohammed’s reflection on the project echoes the general feeling that the influx of water offered more than just physical relief – but brought a new era of hope. Once chained by a lack of access to clean water, the community now looks to a better future.
