RANIYA ABDULLAH

Taiz – Yemen is considered one of the world's most water- scarce countries. Suffering from a civil war for years, the women and girls living in rural areas of Yemen face many hardships. Due to the water crisis, they face more hardships since the task of fetching water falls largely on them. They cover long distances to collect water.

She walks for miles to fetch water

Before the sunrise, women and girls go to the closest water sources. Takalif Ahmed Saeed,19, is one of these women. Every day, she carries a big plastic water container on her head for miles to fetch water. “We sometimes take dirty clothes and blankets to wash them. Then, we fill the water containers and carry them on our heads. We return to our homes at about 11 am,” she told NuJINHA.

 

Takalif Ahmed Saeed had to drop out of high school due to her daily tasks. “I did not find enough time to complete my education. I had to drop out of high school. Before the war, our suffering in the village was much less than now. We used to fetch water, but from a close distance. However, we now have to walk for miles to fetch water because the water source near our village was damaged in a conflict.”

‘Fetching water affects my education life’

18-year-old Sarah Mansour does not find time to study because she has to fetch water every day. In the interview with NuJINHA, she said, “I go to school in the morning. After returning home, I go to the closest water source with my friends to fetch water. We carry plastic water on our heads for miles. We return home before sunset. I cannot study because I feel exhausted and tired. Fetching water affects my education life.”

Women carry plastic water containers on their heads

Dalia Mansour, one of the girls in the village, said, “Most of the girls in this area have been deprived of education because of the lack of water. They walk two miles to fetch water and then they carry plastic water containers on their heads. Most of the girls have already dropped out of school.”

60-year-old Nima Hazaa also carries very heavy plastic water containers for miles despite her advanced age and suffering from many health problems in order to help her family.

‘The war and lack of water increase the suffering of women’

“The war and lack of water increase the suffering of women,” activist Dalia Mohamed said, “The rural women used to fetch water but now their situation is worse than before. Now, women have to cover long distances to collect water. They spend the whole day fetching water.”