Shamala, 50 years old, lives with her husband, three children, her divorced daughter and little granddaughter in a tent set up for IDPs (Internally Displaced People). They have been living like this for many years, after their house in Taiz got destroyed by the war. They barely escaped the horrors of the war, but their life as IDPs is not easy. After the escalation of the economic crisis in the country, their quest for survival has become very difficult.
Their survival depends on what her old husband can collect from other people’s leftover food, or from what he receives from a simple daily wage as a street cleaner. On the days he is unable to work, Shamala borrows some wheat from the neighbors so that she can make a simple meal for her family. But often the children go to bed on an empty stomach. Shamala shares: “Not only are we unable to provide food for the children. We are also unable to take them to hospital if they become sick.
We barely have enough food for two meals a day.” She continues: “I don’t know how to thank you for the food you have given us. I can only pray that God will reward you with all the best. Praise be to God, now we’ll be able to sleep in peace for a while without worrying about how we can provide food for our children.”
