Yemen Monitor/Newsroom:
On Saturday, Nabil Shamsan, the Governor of Taiz Governorate (southwest Yemen), discussed with Julian Harneis, the UN Resident Representative and Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen, the most prominent possible solutions to alleviate the escalating water crisis in the governorate. This is especially critical given the delayed rainy season and ongoing operational challenges.
During the meeting, the governor welcomed the UN delegation, commending their role in supporting humanitarian efforts. He emphasized that resuming water pumping from Al-Hawban and the Taloq project represents an important step to ease suffering. However, he stressed the necessity of working to establish a desalination plant as a radical and sustainable solution to the crisis, which has persisted for decades.
Shamsan affirmed the importance of resuming water pumping from various fields in Al-Hawban and Al-Dabab to the local corporation’s reservoirs. He called for adopting a clear operation and distribution mechanism under direct UN supervision to ensure water reaches citizens fairly and regularly through the local network.
For his part, Engineer Watheq Al-Aghbari, the Director of the Local Water and Sanitation Corporation, presented a detailed map of wells and fields. He highlighted efforts to rehabilitate water infrastructure and resume equitable pumping according to a transparent distribution plan.
In turn, UN Representative Julian Harneis expressed optimism about reaching an agreement soon to restore water pumping to Taiz city. He affirmed continued coordination with relevant authorities to carry out necessary technical repairs, including maintaining wells and transmission lines, and to alleviate the severity of the crisis in the coming days.
