LocationsA water tank allows children to return to school in Asdas, Yemen
During our visit to the Asdas village in Al-Jawaf, we discovered a group of barefoot children atop donkeys with empty water cans. Upon asking them why they were not in school, we discovered they were heading to the community watering hole. The told us that they regularly missed school to collect water. It takes them more than two hours just to get to the well, enduring extremely hot temperatures under the midday sun, to collect a mere 50 liters of water.
Funded by USAID, to help the children return to school, UNDP and the Public Works Project built a water tower only a few meters from the village. This has allowed 920 people and 22 displaced families who fled the conflict in Sirwah and Raghwan in Ma’rib safe and easy access to their water supply.
The children no longer need to miss school and are excited about the new water tower. One of the children said: “Everything is so much better now that I don’t have to miss school. When we want water, I just quickly walk to the tower and fill my cans. Then I can go and play, go to school or do my homework! I am so excited!”
