Project Implementer: All Girls Foundation for Development (AGF)

Funding: Yemen Humanitarian Fund (YHF)

 

The Water Struggle: A Daily Journey of Pain

Before the intervention of the All Girls Foundation for Development, the name of Al-Mahjam village in Al-Meghlaf District, Al-Hudaydah Governorate, meant nothing but “the struggle for a drop of water.” For the residents, obtaining water was an exhausting and dangerous task that consumed their daily lives.

The crisis was twofold: the scarcity of diesel needed to operate water pumps, and the rough terrain that turned water collection into a physically punishing ordeal. Every day, children, women, and men walked long distances or relied on donkeys to transport water containers.

Yahya Ahmed, the village elder, recalls:

“Children falling from donkeys while fetching water was frequent, resulting in serious injuries.”

The impact was not limited to drinking water or sanitation; local farms also stopped operating because they could not run irrigation pumps due to the lack of diesel. This worsened the suffering and affected the village’s food security.

With funding from the Yemen Humanitarian Fund (YHF), the All Girls Foundation launched the “Comprehensive Water and Sanitation Response” project in Al-Meghlaf District. This was not a temporary solution but a fundamental shift toward sustainability. Six solar-powered water pumps were installed to ensure a continuous water supply, overcoming the chronic diesel shortage. Large winged concrete water towers were built, followed by the installation of an internal pipeline network delivering water directly to every household in the village.

Today, the village has been transformed, and the once painful and risky journey for water has been reduced to simply turning on a tap.

Yahya Ahmed, the elder of Al-Mahjam village, testifies to this transformation:

“Now we are truly blessed. Water has reached our homes and is safe to drink. Our children are safer, and we no longer carry water over long distances.”

The project did more than end the hardships of water collection; it generated significant humanitarian and economic impacts:

• Health and Safety: Waterborne diseases declined, and children’s safety improved noticeably.

• Dignity and Time: Women regained time previously spent fetching water, allowing them to engage in activities that support family income and dignity.

• Return to School: Girls returned to their classrooms, no longer burdened with daily long trips to collect water for their families.

• Food Security: Local farms resumed operations after being enabled to run their pumps, supporting livelihoods and strengthening food security in the village.

This success story reflects the power of coordinated humanitarian action, where the All Girls Foundation’s intervention went beyond providing water to restore hope, improve quality of life, and uphold the dignity of families.

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