1. PROGRAM OVERVIEW & CONTEXT

The Issue: The Challenge We Face

Access to safe water, sanitation, and hygiene remains one of the most urgent life-saving needs for millions of people across Yemen. Prolonged conflict, economic collapse, and climate-related shocks have severely weakened WASH systems, leaving vulnerable communities—particularly displaced populations, women, and children—at heightened risk.

Across affected areas, households face daily challenges in accessing sufficient and safe water for drinking and basic hygiene. Children, especially girls, are disproportionately impacted, often spending long hours collecting water from unsafe and distant sources, exposing them to protection risks and disrupting access to education. These conditions reinforce negative coping mechanisms and perpetuate cycles of vulnerability.

Yemen’s WASH infrastructure is critically damaged, under-maintained, and unable to meet growing humanitarian needs. Recurrent flooding, drought, and water scarcity continue to disrupt water supply systems and contaminate existing sources. An estimated 17 million people lack adequate access to safe water, while over 40 per cent of internally displaced persons (IDP) sites lack basic sanitation facilities, resulting in widespread open defecation and increased risks of waterborne diseases and protection concerns, particularly for women and girls.

Insufficient access to safe WASH services is a key driver of disease outbreaks and contributes directly to malnutrition, especially among children in conflict-affected, flood-prone, and hard-to-reach areas. Climate change further compounds these challenges, with nearly half of the population exposed to extreme climate hazards, including drought and heat stress, intensifying water scarcity and undermining community resilience.

Emergency WASH interventions remain critical to saving lives, preventing disease, and restoring dignity, while strengthening community-based systems to withstand ongoing shocks and future climate impacts.

Our Approach: Goals & Objectives

Our Goal: To ensure vulnerable populations have timely, equitable, and life-saving access to emergency WASH services to reduce mortality, prevent disease outbreaks, and preserve human dignity.

Main Objective: To improve equitable access to emergency water, basic sanitation, and hygiene for populations affected by conflict and displacement, in line with HRP 2025 priorities.

Strategic Objectives:

• Objective 1: Water Supply (TA3)

  Providing safe, sufficient, and reliable emergency water to IDPs and host communities.

• Objective 2: Sanitation (TA4)

  Improving access to gender-sensitive sanitation facilities to reduce open defecation and mitigate protection risks.

• Objective 3: Hygiene (TA5)

  Ensuring access to hygiene items and promoting safe practices through kit distribution and community engagement.

• Objective 4: Enablers, AAP & Resilience (TA6)

  Strengthening community-led approaches and local institutions to enhance sustainability and Accountability to Affected Populations (AAP).

Who We Help: Target Beneficiaries

Pure Hands targets the most at-risk populations, including:

• IDPs in camps and informal settlements.

• Host Communities and rural populations without infrastructure.

• Women & Girls burdened by water collection and protection risks.

• Children at high risk of health and nutrition crises.

• Vulnerable Areas: Conflict-affected, climate-vulnerable, and hard-to-reach communities.

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2. PROGRAM IMPLEMENTATION & ACHIEVEMENTS

What We Do: Our Key Activities

• Emergency Water Supply: Water trucking and rehabilitation of communal tanks and tap stands.

• Emergency Sanitation: Latrine rehabilitation and desludging/waste management services.

• Hygiene & Public Health: Distribution of hygiene and IPC kits alongside high-impact hygiene promotion.

• Capacity Strengthening: Training community volunteers and local actors in system maintenance and humanitarian programming.

• Coordination & Assessment: Multi-sectoral needs assessments and alignment with national WASH Cluster structures.

By the Numbers: Our Impact (2013-2025)

METRIC	NUMBER
Total Individuals Reached	471,588
Total Households Supported	67,536
Number of Projects Implemented	45
Total Investment (USD)	$418,039

Gender Breakdown:

• Men: 113,182

• Women: 122,613

• Boys: 115,539

• Girls: 120,254

Sector-Specific Achievements:

• Water Projects: 45 water points constructed or rehabilitated.

• Improved Access: Coverage across multiple governorates.

• Hygiene Promotion: Thousands of participants engaged in life-saving sessions.