Emergency WASH response for Conflict affected communities in Western  Tigray (Humera, Dansah and Maikadra woredas), North Western Tigray (Tselemti Woreda) Eastern Tigray (Gantaafeshum)   and South Eastern Tigray (Wajirat and Dengua Tembien-woredas) zones in Tigray region. According to the draft Humanitarian Response Plan Ethiopia (HRP) 2021, It has been more than a year since the COVID-19 pandemic hit Ethiopia adding another layer of complexity to the already complex humanitarian context. Health systems are stretched to the limit. COVID-19 has also slowed the country’s economic growth rate to 3.71 per cent down from the projected 10 per cent growth rate for 2020. As a result, the number of people requiring food and non-food assistance had already doubled from 7 million to 15.1 million by mid-2020. On the heels of continuing inter-ethnic conflicts,Covid-19, climatic shocks, a severe desert locust infestation, drought and the recent military confrontations between the Federal Government and the armed forces of Tigray regions have created an alarming political tension with adverse humanitarian consequences. According to UNOCHA - Tigray region humanitarian update situation report (7 may 2021), the security situation in Tigray remains largely unchanged, unpredictable and volatile. Active hostilities in Central, North-Western, Eastern, South-Eastern and Southern Tigray continue to be the main access impediment for scaling up operations in rural areas, restricting the freedom of humanitarian movement to reach all people in need.The situation update also identified a WASH gaps as rural areas remain inaccessible where no water scheme maintenance or water trucking delivered and interruption of water trucking operations due to access and security restrictions. As a result, key sanitation and water facilities are lacking in the areas where the IDPs are currently living. Open defecation is common among the IDPs as communal latrines are inadequate and majority of them have no access to improved water source.  

In addition to that, a Multiagency and Multisectoral Rapid Need Assessment which was conducted in Jannuary, 2021 revealed that in South Tigray zones many of the piped systems, boreholes, and handpumps are not functioning with their full capacity. Many handpumps are broken during the conflict and no one from the communities or the local authorities have been able to repair them as the water resource authorities are no longer functioning due to the conflict and the communities are obliged to resort to using water from unprotected sources such as rivers or digging water from areas adjacent to the rivers. This is difficult and time-consuming and often falls to the female members of households, including children and the elderly. As a result, women and girls are obliged to continue travelling long distances to look for water from unprotected sources, which puts them at risk of GBV and other personal security concerns. Water from these sources are obviously unsafe and causing increased instances of waterborne diseases such as diarrhoea. This WASH issues  jeopardising the normal personal hygiene of the community including hand washing, which every community is required to practice now in the COVID-19 era.