In a country where 18 million people are in urgent need of water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) assistance, access to clean and safe drinking water remains crucial for the good health and survival of children and their caregivers. WASH needs remain substantially high due to the increasing number of displaced people as a result of the escalation of conflict along the coastal areas of Al Hudaydah and other frontlines; natural disasters, food insecurity and epidemic outbreaks in Yemen.

The threat of cholera and Acute Watery Diarrhoea (AWD) still looms high in Yemen as it recovers from one of the World’s worst outbreaks in 2017. More than 1.3 people were infected and over 2,800 people died. Children were the worst victims. In 2018, over 361,000 suspected cases were registered, with 493 associated deaths across the country. Improved water, sanitation and hygiene services in health facilities are crucial to ensure the quality of care and to minimize the risk of infections for visiting patients and their families, as well as for health workers and the communities living in the area.

In 2019, Yemen has seen a new upsurge of AWD/suspected cholera cases continue. Since January until the end of June 2019, the caseload of AWD/suspected cholera cases rose to over 400,000. The current outbreak poses a greater threat with a fast spreading of unprecedented scale given that the situation has worsened due to the prolonged conflict affecting the WASH and health system.