Xinhua
05 Jun 2026

by Murad Abdo

ADEN, Yemen, June 5 (Xinhua) -- On World Environment Day, governments and organizations around the world are promoting cleaner energy, greener cities and sustainable development.

In Yemen's southern port city of Aden, Abdullah Ahmed begins the day with a broom.

Before opening his small grocery store, the 52-year-old carefully clears sewage that has spilled across the narrow street outside his shop overnight.

Only after arranging a line of concrete blocks for pedestrians can business begin.

"We clean first and then open for business," he said with a weary smile.

The scene may appear ordinary, but reflects a larger reality of environmental concerns in many Yemeni cities -- overflowing sewage, mounting rubbish, polluted air and the struggle to maintain basic living conditions.

For Abdullah and countless others, environmental pressures are not measured in scientific reports or international pledges, but are encountered outside the front door and along the streets they walk on every day.

Across parts of Aden, stagnant wastewater pools beneath the summer sun, the smell of sewage lingers in the air long after dawn.

Restaurant workers wash pavements before customers arrive. Children navigate around contaminated water on their way to school. Shopkeepers improvise pathways with stones and concrete blocks.

For mothers like Nourah Taha, the concern extends far beyond inconvenience.

"My biggest fear is for the children. We keep warning them to stay away from the water, but children do not always understand the danger," she said.

Health specialists warn that untreated sewage can create favorable conditions for the spread of disease-causing bacteria, parasites and viruses.

"The longer sewage remains in residential areas, the greater the risks to public health," said Abdul-Malik Faisal, head of a medical center in Aden's Al Buriageh district.

Sewage is only part of the story. Another environmental challenge is airborne.

Ali Maqtry points to an empty lot where rubbish accumulates. Residents usually set it on fire, then thick smoke drifts across nearby homes. "The garbage disappears, but the smoke stays," he said.

As daylight fades, Aden's environmental story enters a new chapter.

The roar of hundreds of diesel generators gradually replaces the sounds of traffic as power outages once again darken large parts of the city. The smells of diesel fumes, garbage and wastewater often merge into the backdrop of urban nightlife.

The machines keep homes, shops and hospitals functioning through the sweltering heat, but their exhaust adds another layer of pollution to neighborhoods already struggling with waste and sanitation problems.

An official at the Center for Environmental and Climate Studies at Aden University, speaking on condition of anonymity, said environmental pressures reflect deteriorating infrastructure and limited resources in the war-torn country.

"It tells the story of how people live," he said. "When basic services falter, the signs become visible everywhere -- in the streets, the water and the air."

As dusk settles over Aden, Abdullah prepares to close his shop. The concrete blocks he placed across the sewage-covered street remain where he left them, while the rumble of generators gradually fills the evening air.