Southern Governorate Abyan of Yemen celebrates the
World Water Day 2009

Instead of entertaining high ranking audiences with nice speeches and empty promises the governorate of Abyan took action and carried out the World Water Day 2009 with an awareness campaign focusing on the cleanup of blocked water channels.
Armed with light cleaning equipment and supported by heavy duty caterpillars more than 350 students from Abyan fought against the hindrances in the middle and downstream of the Wadi Bana bed close to Zinjibar.

The task was to open up the channel, free it from blocking sediments, bushes and collect unnatural garbage like plastic bottles, plastic bags, and other disgusting items thrown careless into the channels. Since Yemen has to learn the lesson from last year’s disastrous floods were flash floods destroyed homes and agricultural land in Hadramout, the Basin Water Committee of Abyan wanted to do some activities to avoid major over flooding in Delta Abyan and giving way for the waters.

The recently formed Basin Water Management Committee of Delta Abyan, chaired by the Governor has shown many promising activities in its short time of existence. Already 16 decrees have been passed in favor and for the sake of a proper management of water related issues in Abyan and the Abyan delta.

The NWRA Branch Aden with its unit in Abyan is supporting the Basin Water Management Committee. The NWRA unit supported the organization of the event while technically and financially consulted by gtz-IWRM. This activity is just the kick start of a needed overall cleaning program in which all pathways particular under bridges will have to be cleaned to give flash floods way. The Basin Water Management Committee hopes to get help from the Government and the donor Community to be able to carry out this important task.
Without this activity it will not be possible to bring the farmers back to use surface channeled water for irrigation instead of depleting groundwater resources which are much more needed for drinking water supplies.


April 2009

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