The mother of orphans

Oloom Ahmad Haidara lives with her husband Fouad, their son Fuad, his wife and their five children, in the village of Hufra in the Al Dhuba district of Yemen. Oloom comes from one of the most marginalised groups in the country; Al Fia'a al Muhammasha, or Al Akhdam (the servants). The group is comprised of descendents of former Ethiopian slaves brought to Yemen hundreds of years ago and the group still suffers from significant discrimination today. Socially, economically and politically excluded, they belong to the poorest of Yemeni society.

IR Yemen (IRY) constructed a health centre and provided houses with direct access to clean water in the village where Oloom and her family live. The work was part of the Al Selo Water and Health Programme.

Oloom is known locally as ‘The mother of orphan's’ after taking in her sister-in-law’s four children when she died. In addition she adopted a fifth child Samiha whose mother died while giving birth and whose father refused to raise her.

Oloom says that life for her family is very difficult mainly due to their low income. Her son Fuad works with his father in the fields when there is seasonal work available. Together they earn around six US dollars a day. When someone in the family falls sick most of the time they can afford neither a doctor nor treatment.

Oloom also works as a seasonal farm labourer. Every morning she leaves to work in the fields to support her children. If there is no seasonal work she is forced to go to the neighbouring villages to ask people for charity.

The family lives with fourteen people in a small two room house made out of mud and stones. Oloom, Fouad and their five children share one room of the house. Their cow also sleeps in the room with them. The second room is inhabited by the rest of the family. Talking of the time before the health centre was built Oloom says: "When people in the village were sick there were two outcomes. Either God helped them to recover or they died as they did not have enough money to go to a hospital."

Her daughter Dikra has suffered for months from inflammation in her body without receiving any treatment. Oloom herself has problems in her chest, stomach pain and kidney stones. Oloom remembers when she, the children and other women from her village had to walk at least two hours every day to fetch water. Because of the weight they had to carry over long distances she and the other women suffered from frequent miscarriages.

Since IRY installed the water connection everyone in the village has direct access to clean and safe water inside their houses. The families now only pay for the water units they use, which are counted by newly installed water meters, without paying expensive extra fees. "Before the IRY project nobody cared about us. The local politicians just cared and made promises during the elections. They treat us as servants. They do not treat us like their own kind."