As the conflict in Yemen continues to drag on for a decade now, millions of children remain out of schools across the country, according to UN figures, while many others are growing up amidst uncertainty over access to education.
In its 2024 HNO report, OCHA indicates that of Yemen’s 10.7 million school-age children over 4.5 million are out of school and in need of support to access education, while over 20% of all primary and secondary schools are closed.
“The school-age population in Yemen (5 to 17 years old) represents nearly 33% of the overall population. Two-thirds of school-aged children live in areas that are hard-to-reach due to conflict or other impediments. Enrolment records show that only 61% of school-aged children are in schools,” OCHA said, pointing out that “the quality of learning is negatively affected by nearly 193,668 teachers not receiving salaries or any incentives during 2023, overcrowded classrooms, lack of teacher training, and lack of teaching/learning materials.”
An award-winning, woman-led Yemeni organization with the mission of empowering both women and youth as agents of change, All Girls Foundation for Development (AGF) has recently launched an education project in Al-Jafariyah, one of the hard-to-reach districts in Yemen’s northern governorate Raymah. The organization faced great challenges and difficulties in implementing the project in these extremely rugged areas, which are high on the mountaintops, and it is difficult to transport building materials to them by four-wheel drive or trucks means of transportation, and the residents there still use traditional means, such as donkeys, for example.
The project provided support to 4 primary and secondary schools, with funding from the Yemen Humanitarian Fund (YHF). (the primary stage includes grades 1-9 and the secondary stage includes 3 grades). The project aimed to rehabilitate some of the existing 7 classrooms at the 4 schools, as well as construct another 15 schoolrooms and 3 school principal’s offices, which will–––among other things–––increase the enrollment rate of schoolgirls and boys, The number of beneficiaries of the project was 1090 male and female students.
The 4 primary-and secondary schools in Al-Jafariyah district, which became ready at the beginning of October of this year 2024 AD, received a greater capacity for students in the academic year 2024-2025 AD.
Each school was provided with bathrooms and water tanks with a capacity of 1,500 liters, in addition to sufficient solar energy systems. Schools were also provided with 150 chairs and textbooks, and 345 school bags containing stationery. In addition, Financial incentives for 69 teachers during the project period lasting a full year.
Terrain.. The battle of access
The humanitarian development intervention in Al-Jaafariyah Directorate posed a major challenge for the Foundation in completing the construction process in rugged and highly complex mountainous areas, as they are located on the highest mountain peaks, which are difficult for local residents to reach, not to mention delivering construction materials and equipment. Despite paving parts of the road with stone, other parts are still not fully qualified, and local drivers are taking a real adventure in climbing them in specific four-wheel drive vehicles, in a journey that is not without risks, as the difficult terrain and unpaved roads challenge all forms of movement. Despite this, the work team took an exceptional humanitarian journey to achieve the dream of education for children in remote villages.
Naama.. A village that is an adventure to reach
Naama village in Bani Al-Jaad area is the highest and most difficult area to reach, as the residents of this village still rely on "donkeys" to transport their belongings and needs, due to the difficulty of transportation to reach it. In this village lies Al-Siddiq School, in which intervention was made to build 4 new classrooms and bathrooms from sustainable stone. The work there represented an additional challenge, as building materials such as cement and tiles, for example, used to reach the construction site after three arduous stages of transportation. The first starts from the city of Bayt Al-Faqih in Hodeidah and reaches a point on the mountain road called "Sur Rima", and from this point the second stage of transportation begins via a specialized transport vehicle called locally "Al-Qalab", which reaches the vicinity of the health unit in the village, then the materials are transported by workers "up and down" to the construction site in a distance estimated at 25 meters.
This process did not continue in this manner throughout the work period, as the road, which is basically narrow and can only accommodate one car, was cut off and the four-wheel drive vehicles could not move due to the rock collapses caused by the heavy seasonal rains. Here, we found no way to transport the materials except by donkeys, which traveled a distance of 4 to 5 kilometers. This suffering is faced by the residents of the village and similar villages, whose sons go on real adventures in driving vehicles to deliver the needs of the residents.
Saddam Cairo.. A symbol of courage and a victim of the rough road
Among the heroes who contributed to the success of the project was "Saddam Cairo", one of the experienced drivers in the region. Saddam was not just a transporter of materials, residents' needs and emergency medical cases, but he was a pivotal figure on whom the project relied heavily to deliver construction and restoration materials to the most dangerous areas. Saddam drove his vehicle through the rough mountain roads, assisted by many brave residents of the region who volunteered to transport the materials manually during the difficult stages. He ended up dying as a result of an accident in which his car skidded on one of the narrow slopes on the road leading to the village of Naama, Bani Al-Jaad. His loss was a great shock to the team and to the residents of the region who used to rely on him in the most difficult circumstances. Despite this tragedy, work continued with greater determination, in honor of his spirit and to complete the mission in which he was a key partner.
Manual labor.. dedication to nature
The process of building using sustainable stone was very arduous and difficult. Cutting large rocks and transporting them manually across the mountainous terrain required tremendous physical effort. The workers carried the stones on their backs up and down the slopes, defying all obstacles in a spirit of solidarity and dedication, with the active participation of the people of the region who did not hesitate to provide assistance.
Achievement: A Message of Hope and a Bright Future
Despite all the challenges, the project finally succeeded in building fifteen new classrooms and renovating sixteen old ones. This achievement was not just an improvement to the infrastructure, but an inspiring humanitarian message that confirms that teamwork and determination are able to overcome the most difficult circumstances.
The Foundation affirms its commitment to reaching the areas most in need, and achieving children's rights to education and protection, keeping in mind a humanitarian message whose essence is solidarity and hope for a better future for all.
Since its inception in 2003, AGF has implementing various projects in the field of education in Yemen, seeking to promote better and safe access to education for school-age girls and boys and create learning opportunities for the youth through educational programs and projects. During the current decade-long conflict, AGF has implemented projects which aimed at building, rehabilitating and/or furnishing schools in several Yemeni areas, in addition to providing incentives to school teachers.