Yemen’s crumbling roads mean an arduous quest for water for Taiz villagers

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports that poor road conditions in Yemen’s Taiz governorate are deepening the difficulties of getting water and other basic supplies to remote communities. In villages such as Ragem, about 70km from Taiz city, residents say unpaved and damaged roads make many trips impossible for regular vehicles, forcing people to walk long distances or pay far more for four-wheel-drive transport. The article says around 7,600 people live in Ragem and nearby hamlets, where moving goods and water remains a daily problem.

With local authorities saying they do not have the resources to pave the roads, residents have begun repairing them themselves. Al Jazeera says a grassroots project launched three years ago has relied on donations, volunteer labour and coordination through a WhatsApp group. Volunteers have widened and paved sections of road, including more than 124 metres in under two months, though roughly 500 metres of steep terrain still needs concrete.

The report links the transport problem directly to Yemen’s wider water crisis. In the al-Rahaba displacement camp in Jabal Habashy district, women and children previously walked 3km to reach water, often multiple times a day. Local activist Mohammed Mahyub has since helped fund and install wells, including one serving about 300 displaced and neighbouring families. Al Jazeera also cites UN humanitarian data saying 14.4 million Yemenis still need basic water and sanitation assistance.

More broadly, the article describes how war since 2015 has left the Yemeni state with limited capacity to fund rural infrastructure, pushing communities, aid groups and private activists to fill the gap.