Ibrahim Haidar Ja’man, 60 years old, lives in the Al-Judhoor area of Al-Tarf Al-Shami in Bayt Al-Faqih District, Yemen.

His extended household consists of six immediate family members: three sons and three daughters, who are all married. The sons have six children, and the daughters have ten children. In total, the entire extended family lives together in one compound.

The family’s home is primarily constructed from bamboo reeds, mud, and basic materials. One of Ibrahim’s sons has managed to build a stone room, and Ibrahim himself has also added a
small room. However, the rest of the structure remains made of reeds, wood, mud, and simple
bricks.

Heavy rains pose a significant risk: without covering essential belongings and food with plastic sheets, everything becomes damaged. In the first year of heavy rainfall, all the small huts in the compound were destroyed.

The broader area in Yemen, which includes Al-Judhoor, Al-Jarmouzi, and Al-Baziq, has only one school and one health post. There is no doctor available. In the case of illness, families must travel for an hour by motorcycle to reach Bayt Al-Faqih to find medical assistance.

Due to the lack of healthcare services, community members often resort to buying antibiotics, tablets, and injections from pharmacies and administering them at home without medical supervision, which sometimes results in injury or complications.

Education is also limited. The nearest functioning school is in Al-Jarmouzi, about 3 km away. Children attend irregularly because there is effectively no accessible school in their immediate area.

There is no public electricity. Previously, the family relied on kerosene lamps, gas lamps, and handheld torches. Today, thanks to small solar panels, they have basic lighting, but they still lack appliances such as fans, which are essential during extreme heat.

Residents in the area have long suffered from difficult economic conditions. Families collect firewood and sometimes charcoal to sell at the market. However, income is uncertain. Sometimes buyers are available, and other times people cannot afford to purchase.

Since childhood, Ibrahim recalls his father walking long distances to fill water containers from public wells or distant sources. Water collection was physically exhausting and often dangerous. Containers frequently fell and broke during transport, worsening the hardship.

A displaced man from “Kilo 16” later observed the community’s difficult situation and donated a small solar-powered system with a water tank located 3 km away. Families used to make the trip twice a day to fetch water.
The government had once installed a large water tank for the village, promising piped water, but when the war broke out the system was never completed and the tank remained unused for 20 years.
Recently, Islamic Relief assessed the abandoned tank and agreed to rehabilitate it. They repaired and
restored the structure, installed a solar pumping system, filled the tank, and connected pipelines to all the houses in the three nearby villages.

Today, water is available for every household, thanks to the functioning solar-powered water system. Only the installation of household taps remains to allow water to flow directly inside each home.

The new system has greatly eased the community’s suffering. Access to water, considered the most essential necessity of life, has brought significant relief, especially after years of walking long distances under the harsh sun.

Ibrahim expresses deep gratitude to the donor and Islamic Relief for providing water to every home:

“May God reward you and bless your path. Just as you provided us with water, may God provide you with goodness.”

Despite this major improvement, the community still faces significant needs related to: Food assistance, agricultural support, livestock support, and additional livelihood opportunities.

Islamic Relief has been supporting the people of Yemen since 1998. Please help us to continue this vital work.