The Flowing Sewer Rivers in Sana’a Our Capital: Going Down the Drain! [Archives:1999/34/Reportage]

Ahlam Al-Mutawakel 
Yemen Times 
Sewage has become a complicated problem for the inhabitants of the Capital city. The problem is more lived on Hail Street and Al-Akamah. All the inhabitants of Sana’a do raise a lot of questions that need to be answered. What is the role of the Water and Sewage Authority in solving this problem? What has it achieved in this regard? What are its plans for the future? How do the people bathe and live in places with this type of sewage? Ahlam Al-Mutawakel of Yemen Times met with Essam Makky, engineer and manager of Sana’a Sewage Project. He answered the above questions as follows: 
“One of the most important projects we are intending to carry out in the near future is renewing the sewers of Hail Street, Al-Akamah, the western area, Sawad Hanash, Beer Addar, Al-Shaif and Sana’a University. This project will serve more than 500,000 people. The total cost of the project is $ 1,600,000. 90% was received as A donation of 90% was received from the International Bank and the remaining 10% is the government contribution. The plan for renewing the sewers of Sana’a was made and agreed upon in 1995 to be carried through for 25 years till 2020. In this regard we got $ 25,000,000 as a loan from the International Bank and $ 3,000,000 from the Government. The plan comprises the following: 
* An administrative and financial reform in the Water and Sewage sector. 
* Renewing the sewers of the whole western sector and Al-Akamah. 
* Digging wells in Assab’een Park and developing the existing ones. 
We invited sealed bids to carry out the project of renewing the sewers of the western area and Al-Akamah. One of them was approved by the Supreme Committee for Bids and the President’s Cabinet . The material was approved by the Consultative Company and the contractor to be imported. The work in this project will begin in the middle of upcoming October”. When asked about the reason for the delay of carrying out the project, Mr. Essam commented, ” 
Unfortunately, whenever a foundation stone is laid, people think that work will be soon inaugurated. This project needs time to finish all the needed procedures such as signing the contract, issuing the import licenses, locating the places and approving the material by the Ministry of Planning as well as the Ministry of Finance. This, of course, needs a long a time. Despite all of this, the project was agreed on and initiated in a remarkably short time. For example, a part of Hail Street was repaired and the rest of it is to be repaired later on. I assure you that if the project of the Arab Fund and the International Bank is carried out, most of Sana’a areas will have rid the problem of sewage in 2003. All the studies and plans have been sent to the Arab fund to be approved. There used to be some emergency projects but they all were stopped from being implemented because they are to be included in the upcoming project.” In regards to the damages caused by the old sewers, Essam said that all the old sewers would be landfilled. He also said that the new sewers would serve all the inhabitants. 
Of course, people have to pay for these services, while others might be unable to pay for them. To solve this problem, Essam Makky pointed out that the Sana’a branch would provide installments for the water bills. 
Ilham Mohammed, lives in Al-Akamah and works as a teacher at the National Institute. She said that only a part of Al-Akamah’s sewers were renewed for $ 150.000 and the work was stopped due to the lack of pipes which cost no more than YR 600.000. 
” Sewage spreads all the way in front of our houses and it becomes very difficult for us to clean in front of them. More worse, is that there is no light in our area. This causes many old people, like me, to slip while walking at nights”, Said 80-year Mahdi Al-Jo’adoby who lives with his family on 20th street. At the end of my meeting with him, Al-Jo’adoby appealed to the President to look into their problem. ” We are deprived of the fresh air as well as the joy of playing. There is no clean place in our area to play. We appeal to the government to create a clean and safe environment for us”, said Al-Jo’adoby’s children – Ahmad, Hizam and Fatima. ” Sewage causes a lot of trouble. It causes many diseases and in addition to this, it covers the bumps and makes them unseen. This does a lot of damage to our cars”, said 70-year old Saleh Mohammed Assibaa’e who lives on 20th street. 
After this quick survey of damages, quick solutions become a necessity. One of the solutions that has been already implemented is the establishment of a sewage treatment station in Sana’a. After its treatment, sewage becomes useful to water some of the bulky trees. 
In my visit to this station in Bani Al-Harith. I met with engineer Mansour Al-Kadasy, assistant Project Manager who said that the Bani Al-Harith people are lucky for having such a station in their land to irrigate their farms. “The aim of the station is to protect Sana’a and Bani Al-Harith from pollution”, said Al-Kadasy. The station was built under the supervision of French and Egyptian engineers and it cost $ 35,000,000 which was received as loans and credits from the Arab Fund and the OPEC Fund. The purity of this irrigation water is 95.90%. This statistic approved by the World Health Organization (WHO) and FAO to irrigate specific plants and trees.” When asked about the underground water, Al-Kadasy said it would be used only for drinking and many other purposes other than irrigation. He also said that Bani Al-Harith underground water would be used to supply the capital city. At the end of the interview, Mr. Mansour Al-Kadasy talked about a plan to train the employees of the station to manage the station properly. 

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