Since the last week of January 2023, in the eastern part of Demoso, Karenni state, around 3,500  internally displaced people (IDPs) have been forced to flee again, and they are currently facing the problem of water scarcity.

Ko Banyar, director of the Karenni Human Rights Group, said that most of the existing IDP camps are also sharing water, and the increase of these IDPs could make it difficult in the long run.

"Currently, looking back at all the places that escaped the war, there are villages with very little water. Some villages don't even have a water outlet. In some villages, each family only gets one or two buckets of water per day. In places where only have a bucket of water a day, now that the population is increasing, I think it's going to be a very difficult situation," said Ko Banyar, director of the Karenni Human Rights Group.

In an IDP camp with around 200 households fleeing the war in one village, even the existing IDP are not able to use enough water anymore and have to rely on water donors.

A village official said that since January 23, due to the Military Council troops invading the villages, the number of people fleeing the war has increased again, and if water donors do not come, the current public pond may run out within the next month.

"Currently, if you can donate water with water tankers, it will be convenient. But if you can't get the water donation, next month won't be enough. If we all use this pond, it won't be convenient for the next month. The water has dried up quite a bit.

After that, when the evening comes, the water is no longer clear when people come to draw. Such things have happened," said a village official.

Currently, there are more than 10 IDP camps and 28 schools in the eastern part of Karenni land, most of which are facing the problem of water scarcity. In the same way, the villages are facing water shortages and have to rely on water donors.