Yemen - With clashes intensifying across Yemen in recent weeks, access to safe and usable water sources is severely impeded, and more people, including those directly affected by the conflict, find themselves unable to access basic water needs.

According to the Task Force on Population Movement’s 9th report, there are over two million internally displaced persons (IDPs) across all governorates in Yemen.

Over the past two months, IOM has completed rehabilitation at seven water sites in six districts in Al Dhale’e governorate and 17 water sites in eight districts in Lahj governorate.  The rehabilitation works included the installation of new water pumps and repair of tanks and pipes.

“Fixing the water sources for nearly 90,000 IDPs and conflicted-affected Yemenis in these two governorates is a great achievement,” said Laurent De Boeck, IOM Yemen Chief of Mission. “Yet the needs of the population in the governorates and the country clearly outweigh the available supply of safe and usable water sources.”

According the report, both Lahj and Al Dhale’e governorates now host 13,706 internally displaced households, with approximately, 82,236 men, women and children living among host communities.

Additionally, the UN estimates that 19.4 million people in Yemen need access to safe water. Since the beginning of the crisis, IOM has assisted 10,367 individuals with water trucking and 15,612 with non-food relief items (NFIs) and shelter in the two governorates. 

Besides the efforts in the Al Dhale’e and Lahj governorates, IOM has assisted 67,104 IDPs in Abyan, Aden, Hadhramaut, Hajjah, Al Mahrah, Sa’adah, Shabwah, Socotra and Taizz governorates with shelter and NFI support. It has also assisted 800,137 with water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) activities in Abyan, Aden, Al Jawf, Hadhramaut, Ibb, Taizz, Sana'a and Shabwah governorates.

IOM Yemen’s emergency response is funded by OFDA (US), DFID (UK) CERF (UN), the Humanitarian Pooled Fund and Japan. IOM is seeking additional funding to expand its operations to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable affected populations in Yemen.

For further information, please contact Chissey Mueller at IOM Yemen, Tel: +967.737.501.683, Email: cmueller@iom.int