• Together - Saving more lives.

• 

• HOME
• ABOUT
• MEMBERS
• APPEALS
• SUPPORTERS
• NEWSROOM
• CONTACT
• EVENTS
• FRANÇAIS

How Can You Help?

Click here to find out other ways you can help!

Opinion: Sahel food crisis affecting Mali too

04/04/2012

Embassy Magazine has published an opinion piece by the HUMANITARIAN COALITION on insecurity and the looming food crisis in Mali.

The article is available at the following link: http://embassymag.ca/page/printpage/letters1-04-04-2012 (subscriber only)

In response to your article on the recent developments in Mali (RE: "Mali coup connected with NATO Libya conflict: Fowler," March 28), I would like to draw attention to one aspect of the situation in Mali, one that you rightfully mentioned: the issue of food security in the region.

Indeed, the recent turmoil in Mali is a cause of concern for many in the development and humanitarian community.

At the time of the military coup, erratic rainfall, endemic poverty, low crop yields, and rising food prices were already combining to create an escalating crisis across the entire Sahel region.
The warning signs are clear and should not be ignored.

But can aid agencies continue to implement their programs while a possible takeover of the country by the military is taking place? The simple answer is yes; the more complex question is how.
At this point, there is no indication that Mali's military leaders intend to interfere with the delivery of aid programs.

While the Canadian government has suspended its disbursement of assistance funds to the Mali government, it has not withdrawn its financial support for NGOs working in the country. This is a much-welcomed distinction, one that will enable experienced humanitarian agencies to continue to run programs that are needed to avert the worst; to help save lives as the drought and food crisis, and now possible political crisis, contribute to high levels of hunger among vulnerable populations.

The governments of Mali, Chad, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and the Gambia, have declared a state of emergency. All are appealing for help from the international community.
At the Humanitarian Coalition, our member agencies (CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada, Save the Children Canada) are hard at work in the Sahel region, and most of them have been in Mali for several years.

Ongoing projects in the areas of food security, education, and women's empowerment are supporting local resilience and coping mechanisms to help vulnerable communities counter the effects of food shortages.

This is exactly the kind of work that Canada and the international community need to fund, and expand, if we are to avert the worst of a looming crisis.

Finally, following last week's federal budget, the Humanitarian Coalition will be interested to find out all the details of the announced cuts to foreign aid. While it does not appear at this point that Canada's humanitarian assistance commitments for disaster relief will be adversely affected, we remain keen observers of this file.

If these are times of austerity for Canadians, they are certainly times of grave challenge for at-risk populations in Mali and the Sahel region as a whole.

Nicolas Moyer
Executive Director
Humanitarian Coalition
Ottawa, Ontario

Opinion: Act quickly to avert African famine

03/04/2012

TheStar.ca has published an opinion piece by the HUMANITARIAN COALITION on the looming food crisis in the Sahel region of Africa.

The article is available at the following link: http://www.thestar.com/opinion/editorialopinion/article/1155579--act-quickly-to-avert-african-famine

 

Hunger in the Sahel region is increasing at a dangerous pace. Already, the United Nations estimates that more than 10 million people in Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger are at risk of hunger.

Across the region, erratic rainfall, endemic poverty, dangerously low food reserves and rising prices for staples are combining to create an escalating crisis. The warning signs are both clear and growing.

The longer we wait for additional evidence, the larger the scale of the suffering.

A review of the international emergency response to last year’s drought and famine in East Africa, where 2.6 million people received humanitarian aid, confirmed yet again the need to intervene earlier to avoid a full-blown catastrophe. A joint report (A Dangerous Delay) issued in January by Oxfam and Save the Children provides an insightful road map for improving the timeliness and effectiveness of relief aid.

Together, the members of the Humanitarian Coalition (CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada, Save the Children Canada) are heeding the report’s foremost recommendation: Act decisively and early. With long histories in the region, we are all present in the countries worst affected by this drought and are mounting responses to the unfolding situation.

In Chad, Mali and Niger, Burkina Faso, Mauritania and the Gambia, national governments have declared an emergency, and are appealing for help from the international community. In February, the Canadian International Development Agency announced it would commit $41 million to support nutrition and food assistance programs in the Sahel.

The Humanitarian Coalition members welcome this decision. But more will be needed to avoid a repeat of the East Africa scenario in 2011. The government of Canada can, and should, play a leading role by raising the alarm across the global community and acting without delay to ensure an effective international response.

Agencies already on the ground are well-positioned to mobilize quickly and adapt to the particular nature of respective local environments. This translates into more tailored responses, making better use of available resources. We have been working in the Sahel for decades. Having developed wide-ranging networks in the region, we are established front-line responders with trusted expertise, respected in the communities where we work. We are already addressing the urgent needs of vulnerable communities in Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger, but will need additional funding to avert the worst.

It is also worth noting that ongoing development work, such as establishing water treatment systems, delivering health services, and nutrition education, directly contributes to saving lives before, during, and after emergencies. These projects are essential to the well-being and sustainability of vulnerable populations, and they require funding as well.

While a full-blown crisis attracts more attention with vivid images and stories of severely malnourished children, it is by acting before the situation reaches that point that more lives can be saved.

The Humanitarian Coalition exists for the very purpose of responding quickly and effectively to large-scale disasters, when thousands of lives have been lost or are in direct peril. We have not reached that extreme in the Sahel yet, but it is only by bringing attention to the unfolding situation now that we collectively stand a chance of averting the worst.

By giving early, Canadians can help. The members of the Humanitarian Coalition can push back hunger in the Sahel. Why wait? This time, let’s act before even more people’s lives are at stake.

Patricia Erb , President and CEO, Save the Children Canada
Robert Fox , Executive Director, Oxfam Canada
Rosemary McCarney , President and CEO, Plan Canada
Kevin McCort , President and CEO, CARE Canada
Pierre Véronneau , Executive Director, Oxfam-Québec

Food crisis in Africa’s Western Sahel

29/03/2012

The Sahel region of West Africa is an area of growing concern for humanitarian organizations. Erratic rainfall, endemic poverty, dangerously low food reserves, and rising market prices are combining to create an escalating crisis. According to the latest UN estimates, more than 10 million people in the region are at risk of hunger. Early warning signs are clear and history shows that ignoring them will only increase and prolong the suffering of affected communities

In Chad, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, and the Gambia, national governments have declared an emergency, and are appealing for help from the international community.

We must learn from the famine of 2011 in East Africa. While the public’s response was extremely generous, most humanitarian agencies were not as quick to mobilize as they could have been had the alarm been sounded earlier.

A review of the international emergency response to the crisis offered incontrovertible confirmation of the need to intervene earlier to avoid a full-blown catastrophe. A joint report (A Dangerous Delay ) issued in January 2012 by Oxfam and Save the Children provides an insightful road-map for improving the timeliness and effectiveness of relief aid.

Together, the member agencies of the Humanitarian Coalition (CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada, Save the Children Canada) are heeding the report’s foremost recommendation: Act decisively and early. With long histories in the Sahel region, they are already present and hard at work in the countries worst affected by the unfolding food shortage crisis.

To find out more about what the member agencies of the Humanitarian Coalition are doing to respond to the situation, or to make a donation to support their efforts, please visit their websites at the links below. And tell a friend!

• CARE Canada
• Oxfam Canada
• Oxfam-Québec  
• Plan Canada
• Save the Children Canada

To stay informed of the situation, visit our member’s website regularly by following the links above and follow us on twitter at @humcoalition.

Click on the image below to see a map and key indicators of the crisis.

Early Response to the Food Crisis in the Sahel (Need a Source)

15/02/2012

February 15, 2012 (Ottawa, ON) – Humanitarian agencies are raising the alarm about a drought and food crisis that is unfolding in the Sahel region of West Africa.  Early indicators already reveal that a food crisis is affecting many localised areas across the region in 2012.  The countries most affected are Niger, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Mali and Chad. 

A catastrophic combination of a failed harvest, regional instability, and soaring food prices has left nearly 10 million people at risk of hunger. The region is facing a large-scale humanitarian disaster if immediate action is not taken to prepare appropriate responses. In Niger alone, 5.4 million people are at risk of hunger; at least 1.3 million of those are in critical need of food and assistance now.

Following on the heels of a major drought and famine in East Africa in 2011, the situation in the Sahel region of West Africa could be severe unless early and effective action is taken now. It is not too late to avert the worst impacts or to protect populations from what is coming.  The international community must act now to support national plans and preparedness programs and to ensure communities are equipped to make it through the looming food crisis.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION is comprised of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada, all of which are already responding to the current Drought Crisis in Africa’s Western Sahel region. Speak to a representative in Canada about the crisis and what Canadians can do to help, or members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION on the ground responding to the disaster.  Canadians can support early response and prevention efforts for the food crisis in the Sahel by contacting any of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION members directly.

CARE Canada:
Kevin McCort, CARE Canada President and CEO (En/Fr )
Johannes Schoors, Country Director, CARE Niger (En/Fr )

Oxfam:
Robert Fox, Executive Director, Oxfam Canada, Ottawa (En )
Julie McHugh, Humanitarian Project Officer, Oxfam-Québec, Montreal (Fr/En )
Charles Bambara, Oxfam Regional Media Officer, Senegal (Fr/En )
Fatima Ibrahima, Oxfam-Québec’s representative in Niger (Fr )

Plan Canada:
Dr. Tanjina Mirza, Vice-President of International Programs (En )

Save the Children Canada:
Patricia Erb, President and CEO (En/Spa )
Dr. Bonzi Mathurin, Burkina Faso, Country Director (Fr )
Jeremy Stoner, Regional Director West & Central Africa  (En )


About the HUMANITARIAN COALITION
With a combined presence in more than 120 countries, members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION work together to reduce unnecessary competition, better educate the public on humanitarian needs and reduce administrative costs. Uniting the forces of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION communicates to Canadians with one voice on major humanitarian crises as they happen around the world.


-30-

For interviews, please call:

CARE Canada Alison Frehlich 613-799-7562	Oxfam Canada Juliet O’Neill 613-240-3047  (cell)	Oxfam-Québec Justine Lesage 514- 513-0013
Plan Canada Abigail Brown 647.971.3764	Save the Children Cicely McWilliam 647-291-1683 (cell)

 

East Africa Report: Dangerous Delay (Jan. 18)

18/01/2012

East Africa: Thousands of lives and millions of dollars lost due to late response to 2011 food crisis. Lessons learned can help prevent future disasters and save lives.

Thousands of needless deaths occurred and millions of extra dollars were spent because the international community failed to take decisive action on early warnings of a hunger crisis in East Africa, according to a new report by the international aid agencies Oxfam and Save the Children.

“This report is a timely reminder given that it comes ahead of global meetings at Davos and the African Union” said Nic Moyer, Executive Director of the Humanitarian Coalition. “The agencies that make up the Humanitarian Coalition are already raising the alarm about a looming food crisis that now threatens millions of people in West Africa.  International donors must learn from past experience. Action must be taken before hunger turns into famine.”

The report, A Dangerous Delay , says a culture of risk aversion caused a six month delay in the large-scale aid effort because humanitarian agencies and national governments were too slow to scale up their response to the crisis, and many government donors wanted proof of a humanitarian catastrophe before acting to prevent one.

Sophisticated early warning systems first forecast a likely emergency as early as August 2010 but the full-scale response was not launched until July 2011 when malnutrition rates in parts of the region had gone far beyond the emergency threshold and there was high profile media coverage of the crisis. 

Save the Children and Oxfam say more funding for food emergencies should be sought and released as soon as the crisis signs are clear, rather than supporting large-scale emergency work only when hunger levels have reached tipping-point. By that time lives have already been lost and the cost of the response is much greater. The agencies call on governments to overhaul their response to food crises, as laid out in the Charter to End Extreme Hunger (http://hungercharter.org ), a document that has already received backing from key international figures.

 “Early action saves lives,” said Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada. “It’s irresponsible for governments to wait for the public to push them to act when they know the need and the risks months before the crisis makes headlines. Droughts happen when the rains fail. Hunger happens when governments fail – when they don’t give enough support to small farmers and don’t move fast enough to support families at risk.”

 "That a serious food crisis was developing was known months before TV crews were on the ground in the refugee camps,” said Save the Children’s CEO Patricia Erb. “Children don’t have to face acute malnutrition because we know the steps that must be taken to avert this kind of disaster. First we need to improve early warning systems and second we need to empower the UN to release funds before crises turn into humanitarian catastrophes.”

Although it is impossible to calculate exactly how many people died as a result of drought, the UK government estimates that as many as 100,000 lives were lost between April and August 2011, more than half of them children under the age of five. Today, Somalia remains the most acute food crisis in the world, with hundreds of thousands of people at risk.   

Some early action did take place. But overall, the scale of crisis outstripped these efforts and late intervention cost more. For example, trucking five litres of water per day to 80,000 people for five months in Ethiopia costs more than $3 million, compared to $900,000 to prepare water sources in the same area before a drought occurs.  Such a proactive approach would mean more lives saved and less money spent. It is an approach that should be embraced at a time when accountability, aid effectiveness and proven outcomes are the focus of governments around the world.

Click here to download a copy of the report, A Dangerous Delay .

 

- 30 -

About the HUMANITARIAN COALITION
With a combined presence in more than 120 countries, members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION work together to reduce unnecessary competition, better educate the public on humanitarian needs and reduce administrative costs. Uniting the forces of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION makes donating easy for Canadians.

For further information or for broadcast-quality footage and photographs of the East Africa crisis and response, please contact:

 

Oxfam Canada	Save the Children
Juliet O’Neill 613-240-3047 (cell)	Cicely McWilliam 647-291-1683 (cell)

Hiring: Communication Coordinator

11/01/2012

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION has an exciting opportunity for a bilingual Communications Coordinator .

JOB DESCRIPTION

Title: Communications Coordinator

Location: Ottawa preferred, alternate locations possible in Toronto and Montreal

Position type: Full-time

Contract period : 1-year renewable

Salary: To be discussed

Start Date: February 2012

Are you looking for an exciting new challenge to apply your communications skills to save lives and help survivors of humanitarian disasters?

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION has an exciting opportunity for a bilingual Communications Coordinator .

1. SCOPE OF POSITION

Reporting to the Executive Director, this position is part of a dynamic team committed to raising awareness about humanitarian issues and our members work.  The Communications Coordinator will support the development of the overall communications strategy of the HC and be responsible for its implementation . This position is also responsible for developing all communications material for the Humanitarian Coalition in both official languages.  During emergency appeals the Communications Coordinator becomes the point-person for all Humanitarian Coalition media activities.

Tasks assigned to this position will include, but are not limited to, supporting the design and drafting of communications plans, website content, drafting of media releases, newsletters and any other communications material of the HC (annual report, social media, speeches, editorials, Q&As, etc.), contacts with the media, developing/improving communications procedures for appeals and organising media events.

Dedicated, versatile, creative and committed to excellence, the Communications Coordinator will employ a variety of public relations tactics to engage members and stakeholders in a concerted communications strategy and implement successful national-scale appeals for assistance in support of humanitarian disaster survivors around the world.

The ideal candidate is a motivated self starter and strategic thinker. S/he is a skilled writer in French and English, who has demonstrated experience in media relations, publications or marketing initiatives. Working knowledge of national media, social media tools and exceptional project management skills are required. Experience overseas is a definite asset.

2. QUALIFICATIONS:

• University degree in journalism, marketing, communications or related field 
• Professional experience in marketing/communications and project management with a PR agency, corporation or nonprofit organization
• Bilingualism, written and oral, English/French is required and will be tested in the selection process. 
• Proven ability to write clear, concise and compelling prose — articles, press releases, op-eds, ad copy, blog posts and email alerts etc.
• Demonstrated success in writing, editing and coordinating production of publications to tight deadlines
• Demonstrated success initiating proactive media relations programs
• Dynamic presentation and facilitation skills and experience in community building on and offline through events, trainings, campaigns etc.
• Exceptional project management skills
• First hand experience using social media 
• Solid copy-editing skills, strong attention to detail

• Applicable knowledge of relevant computer software (Microsoft Office Suite);

• Highly organized and works well independently;
• Tact and discretion;
• Adaptable and flexible to evolving work requirements;
• International and/or Humanitarian experience an asset;
• Willingness and ability to travel, sometimes on short notice.

3. ABOUT THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION

The Humanitarian Coalition (HC) is a coalition of five Canadian non-governmental agencies (CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada) with decades of experience in humanitarian assistance, aid and development who undertake united emergency appeals. The HC and its members have developed joint emergency appeal mechanism and capacity in Canada that seeks to provide donors with an easy way to give, educate the Canadian public, strengthen the humanitarian response sector and make a substantive contribution to reducing the suffering and affirming the rights of those affected by humanitarian crises. 

To find out more, visit our website at: www.together.ca

4. APPLICATIONS

If you are interested in joining a dynamic international humanitarian organization, please submit your résumé and cover letter by January 19, 2012 by following the link below:

http://www.careersunited.org/job.asp?ID=3484

All applicants must be eligible to work in Canada. We thank all applicants in advance, however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

Philippines: Typhoon Washi

19/12/2011

Ottawa, ON - Tropical storm Washi struck the Philippines during the night of 17 December, causing severe flooding, damaging homes and roads and affecting tens of thousands fo people.  Cities on Mindanao Island were worst hit by this catastrophie.  HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada, are all carefully monitoring the situation in the Philippines and are preparing appropriate humanitarian relief activities.

Member agencies are carrying out assessments across the region and will be revising their response plans as the situation evolves. The information from these assessments will determine the types of programs and scale of funding support that will be required to assist those affected by this crisis.

For more information, please refer to the member agency websites at the links below:

• CARE Canada
• Oxfam Canada
• Oxfam-Québec
• Plan Canada
• Save the Children Canada

Pakistan Flooding 2011

22/09/2011

Ottawa, ON - HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada, are all carefully monitoring the situation in Pakistan as severe flooding affects large parts of the country and are preparing appropriate humanitarian relief activities.

In this complex and rapidly evolving crisis, HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are determining how they can best provide assistance, including urgently needed food, water and medical supplies. Flooding in Sindh and Balochistan provinces of Pakistan has already affected over seven million people. This is the second year of flooding in the regions, hitting many people affected by last year's floods. 

Member agencies are carrying out assessments across the region and will be revising their response plans as the situation evolves. The information from these assessments will determine the types of programs and scale of funding support that will be required to assist those affected by this crisis.

For more information, please refer to the member agency websites at the links below:

• CARE Canada
• Oxfam Canada Pakistan Flood Relief
• Oxfam-Québec
• Plan Canada
• Save the Children Canada

13.3M people affected by E.Africa Crisis, HUMANITARIAN COALITION urges Canadians to respond

14/09/2011

Ottawa, ON (September 14, 2011) – 13.3 million people are now affected by the crisis in East Africa, according to the United Nations. Providing timely and effective assistance is of utmost importance with the disaster reaching catastrophic levels. As the federal government’s donation match period comes to a close on September 16, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION urges Canadians to take advantage of the opportunity to have their generosity matched, ensuring that their gift does double the work on the ground.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION members – CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada – will continue to base their emergency responses in East Africa on meeting the most urgent needs of survivors. Emergency programs include the delivery of safe drinking water, food, shelter materials and hygiene kits.

“Having just returned from Kenya, I can assure Canadians that they can be confident their donations are being put to immediate and effective use by all members of the Humanitarian Coalition,” said Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada .  “We will continue to safeguard your donations despite the enormous challenges we face.”

“I have witnessed, firsthand, the impact of our life saving efforts,” said Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada . “The need continues to be great but, by acting quickly and by giving generously, Canadians are making a real difference.”

“We are in critical emergency response mode now and help is needed urgently,” said Rosemary McCarney, CEO of Plan Canada , from Ethiopia. “But recovery in East Africa will take well into 2012 and while we assist families in need now, we also continue our long-term risk reduction work for climate-dependent livelihoods. The continued support from Canadians means we can pursue immediate and long-term humanitarian responses to help people survive today and in the months to come.”

“Just having come back from the Dadaab Refugee Camp, I have seen the need of the children,” said Patricia Erb, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada . “Children arriving alone at the camp find food and water but also face the possibility of abuse and exploitation, which is why Save the Children is working to protect them through a foster parent system and safe Child Friendly Spaces”.

The Canadian Teachers’ Federation , a supporter of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, has called upon its affiliate members and individual teachers to raise awareness of the crisis among students.

“The need for donations to East Africa is still great and heightened awareness is integral to continuing the momentum of the fundraising campaign,” said Paul Taillefer, President of the Canadian Teachers’ Federation. “I invite every Canadian teacher to help students understand this crisis and to provide the guidance necessary to help them become engaged global citizens.”

Bell Canada has been an ongoing supporter of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION’s global relief efforts through a number of in-kind contributions and, most recently, a $250,000 corporate donation to support the work of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION in East Africa. Bell Media has also supported the campaign with a multi-platform public service announcement campaign spanning all of its media properties, from television to radio to online.

By working together with one call centre and one donor website, HUMANITARIAN COALITION members can decrease the duplication of fundraising efforts so more Canadian donor dollars are spent where they are needed most.

About the HUMANITARIAN COALITION
With a combined presence in more than 120 countries, members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION work together to reduce unnecessary competition, better educate the public on humanitarian needs, increase the impact of Canadian humanitarian responses and reduce administrative costs. Consisting of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION makes donating easy for Canadians.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, log onto together.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION at P.O. Box 7023, Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0.

-30-

Member updates from East Africa

24/08/2011

Ottawa, ON (August 24, 2011) - Canada’s leading humanitarian organizations and members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are working in East Africa and are providing urgently needed relief to the most vulnerable people affected by this crisis, including women, children and the elderly.

HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have raised over $7.7 million from the Canadian public for relief efforts.  A further $8.5 million has been allocated to three members (CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada and Plan Canada) from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA).

The humanitarian needs in East Africa are huge and food security conditions continue to worsen in many areas. The United Nations has identified that the response to this crisis will require $1.4 billion over the coming months.  The response from Canada and the world must continue to be generous.

In response to the crisis, here are just a few examples of what HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have done so far with the funds raised:

• CARE is reaching 1 million people in East Africa. In Kenya, CARE provides food, water, primary education and psychological support to over 400,000 residents in the Dadaab refugee camps and is working with 305,000 people in north-eastern Kenya to reduce long-term vulnerabilities. In Ethiopia, CARE is providing emergency food and water, and implementing livelihood assistance such as seed distribution. CARE is also reaching families in Northern Somalia with water source rehabilitation and livelihoods support.
• Oxfam is reaching over 700,000 people in Somalia with clean water, sanitation and public health promotion to prevent diseases like cholera and acute watery diarrhea (AWD). In Ethiopia, Oxfam is delivering clean water, rehabilitating water points and distributing hygiene kits, while in Kenya Oxfam is reaching over 700,000 people with water, sanitation and supporting people’s livelihoods with cash and food for work programs.
• Pla n’s most immediate efforts in helping over 260,000 people in Kenya and more than 1 million people in Ethiopia includes providing critically needed high-protein and calorie-rich food supplements to children, breastfeeding moms, and pregnant women suffering from malnutrition. Plan is also providing supplementary feeding to needy households and families; delivering medicine; trucking clean water to health facilities and schools; and providing medical training for health workers. 
• Save the Children is supporting 1.4 million people in Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia; providing food, water, medicine, livelihood support and by protecting children. Save the Children is distributing water and improving water supply and sanitation facilities in health clinics and schools.  Save the Children is conducting child protection activities, placing unaccompanied children with foster parents and responding to cases of child abuse and neglect.

- 30 -

MEMBERS RECEIVE $8.5 MILLION FROM GOVERNMENT OF CANADA’S INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT AGENCY

17/08/2011

Ottawa, ON (August 17, 2011) The HUMANITARIAN COALITION wishes to express its gratitude to the Government of Canada and the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) for its contribution of $8.5 million for relief efforts in Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia, announced today.

The money, which is part of the Government’s pledge to aid relief efforts in the Horn of Africa, will go to three of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION’s five members: CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada and Plan Canada.

Thanks to the generosity of Canadians, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION’s members, which also include Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, have to date raised a combined $6.5 million. With the announcement of these contributions from CIDA, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have received a total of $15 million for urgent relief efforts in East Africa. 

“The generosity of individual Canadians and the Government of Canada is critical to the work we are doing together in East Africa,” said Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada and Chair of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION. “From water point rehabilitation and distributing water treatment chemicals, to emergency aid and advocacy, to providing supplementary food for children and mothers, we are reaching hundreds of thousands of people. But our work is far from done.  We encourage Canadians to continue to donate so we can reach the millions more who are affected by the crisis.” 

“We hope that Canadians will follow the government’s example and continue to respond to this crisis as we get into back-to-school season,” said Nicolas Moyer, Executive Director, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION.

The Government of Canada had previously announced that it would match, dollar-for-dollar, donations made by individual Canadians in a dedicated Relief Fund. The donation matching period ends on September 16.

As a joint Canadian approach to humanitarian response, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION work together during times of international humanitarian disaster to ensure help gets to those who need it most. When a global emergency strikes, member agencies don’t compete for funds and broadcast slots, they focus on helping survivors of the disaster.  With one call centre, one phone number and a joint website, donating to agencies that reach women, children and men with emergency supplies is easy for Canadians. 

With a combined presence in more than 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies.

Canadians can donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and its five members by visiting together.ca, calling 1-800-464-9154 or mailing the HUMANITARIAN COALITION: PO Box 7023, Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0.

Member updates from East Africa - August 3

03/08/2011

Ottawa, ON - Canada’s leading humanitarian organizations and members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are working in East Africa and are providing urgently needed relief to the most vulnerable people affected by this crisis, including women, children and the elderly.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have so far raised over $3.8 million in Canada towards the relief efforts. The need in the area is great and the response must be generous. The United Nations has identified that the response to this crisis will require $1.4 billion over the coming months.

In response to the crisis, here are just a few examples of what HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have done so far the funds raised:

• Save the Children is supporting 1.4 million people in Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia; providing food, water, medicine, livelihood support and by protecting children. Save the Children is distributing water to areas severely affected by the drought and improving water supply and sanitation facilities in health clinics and schools.
• Plan’s immediate aid is supporting over 260,000 people in Kenya, delivering water, medicine, food, shelter, and hygiene promotion. In Ethiopia nearly 1 million people will be provided with school meals, water, farming supplies, and high-protein and calorie-rich food supplements specifically for 11, 500 children and breast-feeding mothers experiencing malnutrition.
• Oxfam is providing water and sanitation to more than 230,000 people on the outskirts of Mogadishu, Somalia. Oxfam is also assisting over 60,000 who have fled drought zones of Southern Somalia and have arrived in the capital. Throughout Somalia, Oxfam is reaching over 500,000 people who benefit from various programs which include direct cash relief for displaced families, water and sanitation services, and cash for work projects.
• CARE is reaching over 1 million women, men and children across the region by providing food, water, education, health services, and livelihood support. CARE continues its ongoing and emergency work in the Dadaab refugee camp, focusing on delivering water, food and support to women and girls suffering from sexual and gender-based violence.

 

HUMANITARIAN COALITION commends Canadian government for commitment to East Africa

22/07/2011

(OTTAWA, July 22, 2011) – Canada’s leading humanitarian organizations and members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION commend the Canadian government for its contribution of an additional $50 million and a retroactive donation matching fund to support the millions of people affected by the drought in East Africa. With the estimated $800 million aid shortfall currently slowing the international response it is encouraging to see Canada honouring its longstanding commitment to humanitarian aid in Africa. Thanks to this announcement, everyone who has donated to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION since it launched its appeal for East Africa on July 6, 2011, will see their donations matched by the Canadian government. Members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have been working in the region for decades and look forward to continued support from the Canadian government to improve coordination in the field in order to move priority issues to the forefront.
The HUMANITARIAN COALITION encourages the Canadian public to mirror the government’s commitment in order to further help the most vulnerable people affected by the crisis, including women and children. The UN says at least $300 million is needed in the next two months to stop the spread of famine so the time to donate is now. All contributions, big or small, can make a difference.

- 30 -

Bell donates $250,000 for African famine relief to the Humanitarian Coalition

22/07/2011

MONTREAL, July 22, 2011 /CNW Telbec/ - Bell today acted on the call for an urgent response to prevent massive loss of life in East Africa with its donation of $250,000 to the Humanitarian Coalition.

"With the United Nations declaration of a famine in East Africa, there is a need for fast action to prevent a catastrophe," said David Wells, Bell's Executive Vice President of Corporate Services.

 

"The Bell team has been touched by the scale of the humanitarian disaster unfolding before us. We are eager to assist the work of the Humanitarian Coalition and urge Canadians to join the almost 60,000 team members at Bell Canada, Bell Media and The Source in supporting aid to the drought stricken region."

CTV News continues to provide extensive on-the-ground coverage, and Bell Media's broader contribution includes a multi-platform public service announcement campaign that spans all of its media properties, from television to radio to online. The campaign will launch in its entirety early next week and will continue in lockstep with needs on the ground. Bell has also provided direct links on its internal websites to facilitate donations by team members.

The Humanitarian Coalition's members - CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada - have warned that immediate action is required to prevent loss of life on a massive scale. Each has a long history and experience in East Africa and they are responding across the region with life saving assistance.

"The drought in East Africa is affecting 11 million people whose lives hang in the balance. Humanitarian Coalition members are already on the ground providing life saving assistance to children and families across the affected area," said Nicolas Moyer, Executive Director, Humanitarian Coalition. "We are thankful to Bell for this very generous contribution to the relief efforts, as the funds will go directly to provide clean drinking water, food for malnourished children, shelter, and medical attention to families. Bell Media's in-kind contribution will help us communicate the urgency of this disaster to Canadians nationwide. We hope that this donation prompts support from Canadians and other members of the corporate sector in Canada."

About Bell

Bell is Canada's largest communications company, providing consumers and business with solutions to all their communications needs: Bell Mobility wireless, high-speed Bell Internet, Bell Satellite TV and Bell Fibe TV, Bell Home Phone local and long distance, and Bell Business Markets IP-broadband and information and communications technology (ICT) services. Bell Media is Canada's premier multimedia company with leading assets in television, radio and digital media, including CTV, Canada's #1 television network, and the country's most-watched specialty channels.

Bell is wholly owned by BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE). For Bell product and service information, please visit Bell.ca. For Bell Media, please visit BellMedia.ca. For BCE corporate information, please visit BCE.ca.

About the Humanitarian Coalition

With a combined presence in over 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of the Humanitarian Coalition provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies. The group has one phone number and a joint website for online donations in order to make donating easy for Canadians. To donate to the Humanitarian Coalition, call toll-free at 1-800-464-9154, log onto http://www.together.ca or send donations to The Humanitarian Coalition, P.O. Box 7023, Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0.

For further information:

Jason Laszlo
Bell Media Relations
1 888 482-0809

 

UN Declares famine in Somalia

20/07/2011

CANADA’S LEADING RELIEF AGENCIES RENEW CALL FOR URGENT DONATIONS TO PREVENT MASSIVE LOSS OF LIFE

Ottawa, ON – The United Nations today declared a famine in parts of Somalia, the highest food security alert level, as the humanitarian crisis worsens in drought-ravaged communities across East Africa. Canadian aid agencies, under the banner of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, are calling on all Canadians to make urgently needed donations to support relief operations and help avert a catastrophe on the scale of the 1984 famine in East Africa that killed over a million people.

The UN uses a five-point scale to describe food insecurity. Last week the region was listed as stage four: emergency. Today’s declaration elevates the crisis in Somalia to stage five: catastrophic/famine. This qualification means that up to one out of every three people is acutely malnourished and most people will experience a death in their family due to the crisis.

Insufficient funding so far has hampered the ability of aid organizations’ like the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION to sufficiently scale up their efforts and prevent the crisis that is now unfolding in East Africa. Across Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya, more than 10 million people—most of them children—are in dire need of food, clean water and basic sanitation. Whole communities have collapsed, livelihoods have been irreversibly damaged and children and adults are severely acutely malnourished.

HUMANITARIAN COALITION members—CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada—warn that immediate action is required to prevent loss of life on a massive scale. All HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have a long history and experience in East Africa and are responding across the region with life saving assistance.  Canadians are urged to support the relief efforts by making a donation immediately online or by mail or phone at the details below.

About the HUMANITARIAN COALITION
With a combined presence in over 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies. The group has one phone number and a joint website for online donations in order to make donating easy for Canadians. 

To donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call us toll-free at 1-800-464-9154, log onto our website at http://www.together.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, P.O. Box 7023, Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0.

- 30 -

Members’ Respond to East Africa Crisis

15/07/2011

Canada’s leading humanitarian organizations and members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are present in East Africa and are providing urgently needed relief to the most vulnerable people affected by this crisis, including women, children and the elderly.

The East Africa Drought Crisis continues to spread. At least 11 million people are now affected across the region, particularly in Somalia, southern Ethiopia and northern Kenya.  The population of the world’s largest refugee camp, Dadaab in Kenya, has now swelled to over 380,000. Because of the number of people affected and the probability of worsening conditions, this crisis is the largest humanitarian emergency in the world.

Here are just a few examples of what HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have done so far in response to the crisis:

• CARE is providing food, water, health, education and livelihoods support to nearly one million people in Ethiopia, Northern Somalia and Kenya, including over 1,000 new daily arrivals at the Dadaab refugee camp. To respond to the particular needs of women and girls at the camp, CARE is identifying and supporting those who have suffered from sexual and gender-based violence.
• Oxfam is managing a water and sanitation project in Afgoye, Somalia, providing 11.5 million liters of portable water to 30,000 internally displaced persons (IDP) residing in 55  IDP camps.  Oxfam is also leading rehabilitation and construction of new water sources in Somaliland (Togdheer region) to reach 16,000+ people.
• Plan has provided supplementary feeding to 3,400 children, school feeding to 4,275 children and assisted 1,300 households with livelihood support in Ethiopia.  In Kenya, immediate aid will target 114,000 people and will involve providing clean water, medicine, delivering nutrition programs including supplementary feeding at 414 schools, shelter and hygiene promotion.
• Save the Children is distributing food and life-saving water to areas severely affected by the drought and improving water supply and sanitation. For example, we are feeding 9,000 children at 60 feeding centres, are giving family rations to the families of children in our supplementary feeding program and have distributed over 24 million litres of water in South Central Somalia, reaching over 70,000 people.

- 30 -

About the HUMANITARIAN COALITION

With a combined presence in over 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies. The group has one phone number and a joint website for online donations in order to make donating easy for Canadians.

To donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call us toll-free at 1-800-464-9154, log onto our website at http://www.together.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, P.O. Box 7023, Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0.

Appeal Launch for East Africa Drought Crisis

06/07/2011

Canada's leading relief agencies raise the alarm that millions face starvation as drought ravages east African nations.

Ottawa, ON (July 6, 2011) – Canadian aid agencies, under the banner of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, are urging Canadians, the Canadian Government and the media to support the urgent efforts to prevent the widespread food crisis that threatens the lives of 10 million people, mostly children, in East Africa.  The region is facing its worst drought in over 60 years according to UN reports and humanitarian personnel in the region. Consecutive years of failed rains have caused devastating losses of livestock, incomes and food supplies while resulting sky-rocketing food prices are exacerbating an already precarious situation.

CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada, five of Canada’s largest relief agencies are joining together to raise funds for the delivery of safe drinking water, food, health and nutrition services, shelter materials and crucial support for families who have lost their incomes.

“The situation in East Africa is dire. We must act now to prevent thousands of lives from being lost to malnutrition and dehydration”, said Patricia Erb, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada and member of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION. “Infants and children are especially vulnerable. Their survival depends on all of us—aid agencies, governments and the public—working together.”

HUMANITARIAN COALITION members, working in the region for decades, saw the warning signs of drought and responded quickly to save many lives. As the situation escalates, emergency relief operations are ramping up to meet the increasing needs of people in the region, including thousands living in refugee camps and scores more who are arriving each day.

“As a result of this drought, over 1,000 new refugees are arriving in Kenya each day,” says CARE Canada President and CEO Kevin McCort. “Organizations are scaling up programs in Kenya, and throughout the affected region, but resources are strained. Support is urgently needed to ensure people continue to receive the life-saving support they need.”


About the HUMANITARIAN COALITION
With a combined presence in over 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies. The group has one phone number and a joint website for online donations in order to make donating easy for Canadians. 

To donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call us toll-free at 1-800-464-9154, log onto our website at http://www.together.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, P.O. Box 7023, Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0.

- 30 -

Plan Canada joins the HUMANITARIAN COALITION

06/06/2011

Children’s rights organization Plan Canada joins HUMANITARIAN COALITION

June 6, 2011 (Ottawa, ON) - Plan Canada, a member of one of the world’s oldest and largest international development organizations supporting social justice for children around the world, has joined the HUMANITARIAN COALITION.

Now comprised of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Plan Canada and Save the Children Canada, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION brings together leading Canadian humanitarian organizations to efficiently and effectively raise money in times of international humanitarian crisis. By eliminating unnecessary competition, reducing duplicated fundraising costs and better educating the public on humanitarian needs, we can focus on what really matters: helping those in need during times of disaster.

“Plan Canada is proud to join the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and the important initiative put forward by its members to form a Canadian cross-sector partnership to help the survivors of humanitarian disasters,” said Rosemary McCarney, President and CEO of Plan Canada. “When disaster strikes and lives are in the balance, our sector must work in solidarity to ensure we respond in the best way possible, and the HUMANITARIAN COALITION is an inspiring example of what we can achieve.”

“Plan Canada is a highly respected organization, with a proven track record in humanitarian response, promotion of children’s rights and working to stop child poverty,” said Nicolas Moyer, Coordinator, HUMANITARIAN COALITION. “Aid agencies that join the HUMANITARIAN COALITION benefit from economies of scale: we pool resources to spend donor dollars more efficiently and save more lives. With Plan Canada’s membership and the continued support of companies like CTV, CBC and eBay Canada we continue to create a new and better model for ensuring more help reaches the survivors of disasters wherever they happen.”

As a joint Canadian approach to humanitarian response, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION work together during times of international humanitarian disaster to ensure help gets to those who need it most. When a global emergency strikes, member agencies don’t compete for funds and broadcast slots, they focus on helping survivors of the disaster.  With one call centre, one phone number and a joint website, donating to agencies that reach women, children and men with emergency supplies is easy for Canadians.

With a combined presence in more than 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies.

-30-

Ivory Coast / Liberia Crisis

15/04/2011

Since November 2010, a post election clash in Ivory Coast has left the country in turmoil with an ever growing quarrel between opposing factions. Growing numbers of Ivorians affected by the crisis have saught refuge in neighboring countries to escape violent outbreaks. However, destination countries such as Liberia have been struggling with this influx of refugees. After overcoming a long time civil war that ended in 2003, Liberians fear the impacts of arriving refugees on their country and that accompanying violence may destabilize their still recovering country.

The situation in Ivory Coast and Liberia has descended into a huge humanitarian disaster which requires urgent international funding.

Despite recent political developments, the humanitarian emergency remains and the needs of people affected by extreme fighting continue to escalate.  The crisis is far from over in Ivory Coast, according to HUMANITARIAN COALITION member organizations, and will require international attention for months to come. Funding is desperately needed to provide life-saving aid and to rebuild shattered communities, but the humanitarian aid pledged is so far falling dangerously short.

The conflict in Ivory Coast has already displaced more than one million people from their homes and forced around 135,000 refugees to flee to Liberia . People made homeless by violence are now in desperate need of food, water, shelter, sanitation and protection. The majority of the displaced are children, many of whom are at risk from disease and hunger. 

Guy Cave, Save the Children's Country Director for Ivory Coast said: “According to our staff on the ground, displaced children and their families are living in terrible conditions in Duekoué. There are no proper toilets and a huge lack of water, so people can't keep clean. There is massive overcrowding and people have nowhere to sleep. The risk of disease spreading is acute. This is a catastrophic situation and children need urgent help.”

Displaced people and refugees are mostly living with relatives or in strangers’ homes, causing a major stress on local food supplies. In Liberia, aid agencies are reporting a near- exhaustion of food stocks, families reducing their food consumption to one meal per day, and major increases in the price of rice and cassava in local markets. Scattered in remote and dense forest border areas between Ivory Coast and Liberia, a huge number of refugees remain incredibly vulnerable and out of reach of life-saving relief.

Tariq Riebl, Oxfam’s Humanitarian Manager in Liberia said: “Many refugees we are working with are too afraid to return home any time soon. The crisis has also severely affected the incomes of families. This is a humanitarian crisis that is likely to continue for months to come. We need to urgently expand our response to meet the escalating needs in Ivory Coast and Liberia but without the funds tens of thousands of people will go without help.”

Currently, there are more than 12,000 U.N peacekeepers in Ivory Coast. While preventing violent attacks and promoting stability are undoubtedly important, urgent relief efforts are needed to assist the survivors and to prevent violent strikes from erupting in these stress ridden environments.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION and its members are surveying closely the situation in Liberia and Ivory Coast as they are mounting programs of intervention to assist survivors and refugees from Ivory Coast.

To stay informed of the situation, visit our member’s website regularly by following the links below and follow us on twitter at @humcoalition 

• CARE Canada
• Oxfam Canada
• Oxfam Quebec
• Save the Children

Recent updates on the crisis in Ivory Coast\Liberia

Japan Earthquake Update: April 5

05/04/2011

Nearly four weeks after the massive earthquake and tsunami in Japan, more than 170,500 people are still living in evacuation centres. The devastation of the earthquake and tsunami continues to exact a huge toll. Beyond immediate needs, it will take many years for local communities to rebuild.

The members of Canada’s HUMANITARIAN COALITION are providing relief in support of the Japanese Government’s emergency management efforts.

• CARE is targeting 20,000 beneficiaries in the coastal communities of Iwate Prefecture directly impacted by the tsunami.  This prefecture has had less attention and presence than Miyagi and Fukushima to the south.  CARE is focusing on food security, shelter, psycho-social support programs and disaster risk reduction.  Their response includes food distribution, supplying non-food items and upgrades to evacuation centres.

 

• Oxfam is supporting a local multi-language centre to help an estimated 40,000 non-Japanese speakers with a hotline, portable radios and batteries and translation of information from local authorities. Oxfam is also supporting the Japan Women’s Shelter Network and the Single Mothers’ Forum to provide counseling for women, including a 24-hour sexual and domestic violence hotline. In cooperation with two local partner organizations, Oxfam will also provide private spaces in the evacuation centres for breastfeeding, as well as diapers and sanitary goods and counselling to women under stress. 

 

• Save the Children is carrying out child protection activities focusing on providing Child Friendly Spaces (CFS) in some of the major evacuation centres in Miyagi and Iwate. In this protective environment, children can play, talk about their experiences, and establish a routine in a chaotic situation.  At present Save the Children has a total of five CFS operating (three CFS operating in Sendai City servicing six evacuation centres and two in Ishinomaki servicing four evacuation centres).

To find out more, visit the member organization websites at the links below:

• CARE Canada
• Oxfam Canada
• Oxfam-Québec
• Save the Children Canada

 

Libya Crisis: Update

30/03/2011

Latest UN reports indicate that more than 376,485 people have fled Libya to neighboring countries Egypt and Tunisia while another 80,000 have been internally displaced since the beginning of the internal conflict which has beset that country.

Despite the establishment of a “no-fly zone”, conflict continues in Libya as Muammar Gaddafi’s government forces continue to clash with opposition forces. The escalating violence has severely disrupted access to medical care and food supply lines provided by relief organizations. Increases in food prices and the lack of water, fuel and electricity have also deepened the nature of the crisis and created a greater demand for aid agencies to come lend a hand.

Recognizing the scale of this crisis and the magnitude of growing humanitarian needs in the region, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are doing their part to bring emergency assistance to the people directly affected by the conflict.  This effort is conducted in close collaboration with other aid agencies in the intervention areas.  

To find out exactly what the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are doing to respond to the situation, or to make a donation to support their efforts, please visit their websites at the links below:

• CARE Canada
• Oxfam Canada
• Oxfam-Québec
• Save the Children Canada

March 28, 2011: updates on humanitarian assistance in Libya

 

Japan Earthquake: All aid dollars support survivors

24/03/2011

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION today reiterated that all donations for the disaster in Japan will be helping the survivors of that disaster.

In the affected regions, people are still grappling with the human loss, now estimated to be at least 10,000 people, and the ever-present nuclear threat. CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Quebec and Save the Children Canada are present through their Japanese partners providing assistance to survivors in evacuee centres and giving psychosocial support to children.

“All money raised by HUMANITARIAN COALITION members for Japan will be spent helping people affected by the disaster in that country,” explains Nicolas Moyer, HUMANITARIAN COALITION Coordinator. “We will continue to heed the calls for help from our Japanese counterparts, who are struggling to meet the needs of survivors.”

All donations will fund the work of CARE Japan, Oxfam Japan and Save the Children Japan, all non-governmental organizations that are providing relief alongside the government. They specifically requested support from their counterparts around the world due to the overwhelming challenges the Japanese people face.

“No country, no matter how wealthy or prepared can manage a disaster of this scale and magnitude alone,” Moyer said. “Regardless of where a disaster takes place, we have a responsibility to respond when requested by our colleagues on the scene.”
 
HUMANITARIAN COALITION members welcome debate about disaster-related fundraising, citing critical questions from the media and public as promoting transparency and accountability in fundraising. Public debate also provides the opportunity to discuss what happens when emergencies don’t generate media interest, the situations that make up the core work of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada. 

- 30 -

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to humanitarian emergencies. By combining under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION makes it easy for Canadians to donate in an emergency. Working together in this capacity reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

Follow the HUMANITARIAN COALITION on twitter at @humcoalition

6.8 Earthquake in Myanmar: March 24

24/03/2011

A strong earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter Scale has hit Myanmar at approximately 20:35 local time. The HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have offices in Myanmar and are trying to gather more information about the impact of the quake and the safety of their staff.  However, the earthquake struck at night, and more detailed information will likely not be available until tomorrow morning.

The members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have worked in Myanmar for many years, some for decades, and have many staff in the country with extensive emergency experience prepared to respond immediately if needed. CARE, Oxfam and Save the Children all supported the emergency response after Cyclone Nargis in Myanmar in 2008, helping many hundreds of people with emergency assistance and supplies as they sought to rebuild their lives.

Click here to see a map of where the earthquake has struck.

For more information as it becomes available, please consult the members' websites below and follow us on Twitter (@humcoalition)

• CARE Canada
• Oxfam Canada
• Oxfam-Québec
• Save the Children Canada

Japan Earthquake Update - March 17, 2011

17/03/2011

March 17, 2011 – One week after the massive earthquake and the tsunami in Japan, over half a million people are in emergency shelter, almost 2 million households are without power in the freezing north, and about 1.4 million households have no running water.

The members of Canada’s Humanitarian Coalition are present providing relief in support of the Japanese Government’s emergency management efforts.

• CARE is sending three vehicles of relief items to Iwate prefecture in North Japan. The team will distribute water, face masks, toilet paper, sanitary tissues, biscuits, fruits and small portions of rice to approximately 900 people. They will then assess the situation to determine how best CARE can scale up the response.
• Oxfam is supporting a local multi-language centre, FACIL, to help the estimated 40,000 non-Japanese speakers in the affected area with a hotline, portable radios and batteries, and translation of information put out by local authorities.
• Oxfam is also working with the Japan Organization for International Cooperation on Family Planning, the Japanese Midwives’ Association and local obstetrics and gynecologists to provide private spaces for breastfeeding in the evacuation centres, diapers and sanitary goods, and counseling to women under high stress.
• Save the Children opened the first child-friendly space in Sendai less than five days after the earthquake and tsunami, in a primary school currently being used as an evacuation center. In this protective environment, children can play, talk about their experiences, and establish a routine in a chaotic situation. 
• Save the Children will set up more child friendly spaces over coming days to complement the Japanese government-led relief effort.

- 30 -

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to humanitarian emergencies. By combining under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION makes it easy for Canadians to donate in an emergency. With one joint fundraising apparatus, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

Japan Earthquake Appeal - March 11, 2011

12/03/2011

Canadian aid agencies, under the banner of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, are urging Canadians to support the relief efforts in Japan after a massive 8.9 magnitude earthquake, the largest in the nation’s recorded history, and tsunami have devastated the region. Recent reports suggest that thousands are among the dead after the quake and a resulting tsunami which reached heights of up to 10 metres in some areas.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION is working together with our partners in Japan and will provide funds to help where the Japanese government indicates that help is most needed. While the Japanese government is extremely well prepared for such situations, we are stepping up to help and urge Canadians to do the same.

To donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, Canadians can access our donation form or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, P.O. Box 7023, Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0.

***********

The response will be led by the Japanese government which is amongst the best prepared in the world for such disasters. They will be supported by national non-governmental organizations which also have significant disaster response experience and resources. Japan has requested international humanitarian assistance in support of relief efforts.

Initial concerns about a potentially devastating tsunami fanning out across the Pacific Ocean have not so far been realised. The Government of the Philippines has reported that the waves striking the country have been less than one metre high and have not caused any loss of life or significant damage. The HUMANITARIAN COALITION and its member agencies continue to closely monitor the impact of the tsunami as its impacts become clearer. 
 
To find out more about what the HUMANITARIAN COALITION members are doing to respond, please visit their respective websites at:

• CARE Canada: www.care.ca
• Oxfam Canada: www.oxfam.ca 
• Oxfam-Québec: www.oxfam.qc.ca  
• Save the Children Canada: www.savethechildren.ca

Survivors of Pakistan’s floods face new threats

08/02/2011

Six months after catastrophic flooding forced millions of Pakistanis to flee their homes in search of higher ground, HUMANITARIAN COALITON members are warning that winter temperatures have introduced new threats to already vulnerable flood survivors.

"The number of women, men and children who are malnourished has reached alarming levels," said Robert Fox, Oxfam Canada Executive Director. "For them, this emergency is far from over. Given the immense scale of this disaster we have only scratched the surface of human need."

Hundreds of thousands of people remain in or are living in tents beside their destroyed homes. In the south of the country, swathes of land remain under contaminated water. Elsewhere, crops have failed, and food prices are on the rise, causing an increase in already troubling pre-flood malnutrition rates.

Still, Pakistan’s ongoing crisis remains under-reported and under-funded by the international community.

Only 56 per cent of the UN's $2 billion funding appeal has been met by international donors. Canadians donated $47 million to help the 20 million Pakistanis forced from their homes by the floods, a fraction of $220 million they donated to help the three million Haitians affected by the 2010 earthquake.

Although rebuilding is underway, basic services and adequate shelter remain out of reach for many. Sub-zero winter temperatures have increased the incidence of respiratory infections, including influenza and pneumonia, with more than 200,000 cases reported in the second week of January alone. Pneumonia is the leading cause of death for children in Pakistan under the age of five and freezing conditions are expected to fuel the spread of disease.

"More children are going to die in the flood-affected areas if they don't get appropriate treatment in time. We need to help people identify respiratory illness in infants and children early, and make sure that medical care is accessible," said Mohammed Qazilbash, Save the Children's spokesperson in Pakistan.

Members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have shifted from emergency aid to long-term projects, distributing kits containing blankets, sweaters and quilts, continuing cash-for-work programs and expanding construction of recovery shelters.

"Millions of people who lived on the edge of survival before the floods must now somehow rebuild their livelihoods and communities. The generosity of Canadians has saved lives in Pakistan Kevin McCort, President & CEO of CARE Canada “But, much more support is needed to rebuild following the biggest emergency of recent times. We must not forget these people and that their lives and futures remain at risk.”

Together the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION - CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada - have reached more than 2.5 million people with a broad range of relief and reconstruction activities.

To ensure the needs of the most vulnerable flood-affected people are met, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION continue to advocate for an effective and comprehensive humanitarian response from the Government of Pakistan and the international community.

Member agencies are also calling for the implementation of integrated disaster risk recovery strategies to increase communities’ resilience against any future disaster.

– 30 –

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, through its member agencies, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in over 120 countries. By coming together under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

Haiti Still Needs Our Support

12/01/2011

1-year anniversary of devastating quake a time to renew commitment to working together to help Haiti rebuild.

January 12, 2011 – (Toronto) Emergency aid has helped Haitians survive cholera, tropical storms and the aftermath of a devastating earthquake, but the international community must work harder to start long-term reconstruction and development, members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION said today at joint news conferences in Toronto and Montréal.

“In the past year, we’ve been able to meet Haitians’ most basic needs, but we’re ready to move forward,” said Oxfam Canada Executive Director Robert Fox. “There’s a huge level of need there and a huge level of frustration. We need to see a renewed commitment to job creation, rubble removal and resettlement to move beyond band-aid emergency aid toward long-term, sustainable solutions.

In the year since the 7.3-magnitude earthquake reduced most of Port-au-Prince to rubble, killing more than 222,000 people and injuring more than 300,000 others, HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have focused on providing shelter, access to health care and medicine, psychosocial support, clean water and new latrines and water lines, as well as fighting the spread of cholera.

“Haitians continue to live with remarkable resilience and optimism,” said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada. “We have a responsibility to Haitians, to listen to them and to work with them to rebuild. We must also live up to our promises to the generous donors whose support has made the massive emergency relief and rebuilding effort in Haiti possible”.

Major challenges persist, including significant damage to roads and all other infrastructure, and the instability within the Haitian government.

Despite the barriers, progress is being made. Some 500,000 displaced people have left the camps since July, when the camp population peaked at 1.5 million. That represents a reduction of nearly one-third in five months, and the decrease has been even more dramatic in the semi-urban and rural areas, such as Léogâne. HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have also managed to reach millions of Haitians with life-saving cholera prevention programs and emergency services and have also helped dozens of communities re-start businesses and prepare for reconstruction with cash-for-work programs. 

“We need to be realistic about what could be achieved within a year,” said Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada. “Rebuilding Haiti and making it stronger will take years, but this shouldn’t stop everyone in Haiti -- including aid agencies, the government, and civil society – from challenging themselves to seize momentum, move even faster and achieve more today than yesterday.”

In the aftermath of the earthquake, together the HUMANITARIAN COALITION members received $28.1 million in donations, including $15.5 million in public and/or corporate donations and $12.6 million from CIDA and/or Quebec government.

With a combined presence in 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies.

- 30 -
To arrange interviews or for more information, please contact:

Kieran Green             Karen Palmer   
           
(613) 799-7562            (613) 240-3047

Justine Lesage            Denise Koulis
       
(514) 513-0013             (647) 272-7134           


To learn more about the HUMANITARIAN COALITION response in Haiti, please visit http://haitiportal.humanitariancoalition.ca/

Hurricane Tomas Alert for Haiti

04/11/2010

The members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are closely monitoring Hurricane Tomas as this cyclone approaches Haiti and teams are preparing to respond accordingly in the likelihood of another emergency requiring humanitarian aid.
 
Major preparations are underway for Hurricane Tomas. The Government of Haiti is leading preparations, with support from aid agencies.
 
CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada all have contingency plans in place for the hurricane season. For months, the member agencies have been planning for possible hurricanes and ensuring supplies are available to respond to these types of storms.
 
As this cyclone approaches Haiti, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are remaining vigilant as the situation unfolds.
 
To find out more about what the HUMANITARIAN COALITION members are doing to respond, please visit their respective websites at:
o    CARE Canada: www.care.ca
o    Oxfam Canada: www.oxfam.ca
o    Oxfam-Québec: www.oxfam.qc.ca
o    Save the Children Canada: www.savethechildren.ca

Pakistan 3-months later: Program Update

04/11/2010

Three months have now passed since the start of the massive flooding that hit Pakistan in August and September 2010.  In that time the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have been working hard with partners and communities in Pakistan to deliver much needed relief, and to support the initial stages of recovery and reconstruction.

“Although the cameras have been packed up and the international media attention has turned elsewhere, the recovery efforts in Pakistan continue to increase as we work hand-in-hand with Pakistani communities on the long road to recovery,” said Kevin McCort, president and CEO of CARE Canada. “Supported by the generous donations of Canadians, efforts have continued to mount to support Pakistani families rebuild their livelihoods.”

“The crisis is far from over,” said Oxfam Canada Executive Director Robert Fox, noting that the UN’s appeal is still woefully underfunded. “Parts of southern Sindh still remain a disaster zone. When the world’s attention was focused on Pakistan’s flood survivors there was a chance of seeing substantial aid being delivered. But as the worst of the flood waters have receded, so has the promise of significant funding.”

Money raised has gone directly to support the relief operations of HUMANITARIAN COALITION members  CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada. Together the members have reached over 2.5 million people with a broad range of relief activities. Some highlights from those operations include:

• CARE is providing medical aid through health centres and mobile clinics. Assisting pregnant women is a key part of CARE’s health work in Pakistan. CARE has also been providing women with safe birthing kits and ensuring female doctors are a part of its medical teams to provide reproductive health services to women, respecting the requirements of Pakistan’s Muslim culture.
• CARE is also delivering relief supplies including shelter kits, hygiene kits, and “Lifestraw” kits – special straws that filter water for drinking.
• Oxfam’s programs are delivering water, food and shelter materials. Hundreds of thousands of people are receiving clean drinking water, have been given access to hygiene facilities, and have received hygiene promotion training and hygiene kits.
• Oxfam is ramping up cash-for-work programs to provide much needed incomes for families and support the clean-up and infrastructure repairs.  Additionally, families have received food security assistance in the form of a money transfer. 
• Save the Children has provided assistance to both children and adults by providing emergency medical care and the distribution of shelter materials, hygiene kits, water purification sachets, food and other supplies. 
• Save the Children has also established 63 child-friendly spaces to meet the immediate psycho-social needs of children in affected areas and are working with communities to address issues which threaten children’s well-being.

Though the initial flooding disaster has passed and flood waters have largely receded, critical challenges remain for the people of Pakistan as they grapple with destroyed livelihoods, devastated infrastructure (schools, homes, roads and more), failed crops and the risk of sickness and disease through the coming winter.  The members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION will continue to work alongside Pakistanis in the difficult months and years ahead.

– 30 –

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, through its member agencies, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in over 120 countries. By coming together under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

For more information about the crisis, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION or as an alternate means to arrange an interview with agency spokespeople, please contact:
 
Kieran Green, CARE Canada   
613-799-7562


Karen Palmer, Oxfam Canada
(613) 240-3047

Justine Lesage, Oxfam-Québec
514 513-0013


Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 273-7134

Cholera outbreak in Haiti

22/10/2010

The membres of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are closely monitoring the spread of cholera in Haiti and teams are prepared to respond accordingly.

CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children all had contingency plans in place for a possible cholera outbreak and are remaining vigilant as the situation unfolds.  We know that the Haitian government has met to take control measures which will be put in place as soon as they become public.

Already, some roll-out of sanitary and hygiene measures has begun - such as the distribution of soap and information on cholera transmission.

Find out more about the risks of disease, by clicking here.

Over $3 million raised for Pakistan relief

30/09/2010

The members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are proud to announce that they have together raised over $3.3 million towards the Pakistan flood relief.

September 30, 2010 (Ottawa, ON) – With just days  left in the Government of Canada’s campaign to match individual donations to Pakistan flood relief, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are announcing that they have together raised over $3.3 million towards this cause. Over $3 million of that is eligible for government matching funds.

“The basic idea behind the Humanitarian Coalition is that together we can accomplish more, together we can save more lives,” said David Morley, president and CEO of Save the Children Canada. “We demonstrated this in our response to Haiti, and we demonstrated again with our response to the floods in Pakistan, that our coalition model is effective in raising funds for major emergencies.”

For the Pakistan appeal the HUMANITARIAN COALITION had strong support from Canadian broadcasters and the private sector, including the CBC, CTVglobemedia, Astral Médias, and eBay Canada. “The participation of these partners played a major role in increasing awareness of the disaster and donations from Canadians to help the millions of Pakistanis affected by the floods,” said Kevin McCort, president and CEO of CARE Canada.
 
Money raised received so far is already supporting the relief operations of HUMANITARIAN COALITION members - CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada. Those operations include:

• Save the Children has provided assistance to more than 1,000,000 children and adults through emergency medical care and the distribution of shelter materials, hygiene kits, water purification sachets, food and other supplies.
• Save the Children has established 63 child-friendly spaces to meet the immediate psycho-social needs of children in affected areas and are working with communities to address issues which threaten children’s well-being. 
• CARE has reached over 122,000 beneficiaries with health care services, shelter, clean water, food, and non-food relief items such as hygiene kits
• CARE’s outreach includes mobile and stationary health camps, and health and hygiene awareness raising sessions. Reviving livelihoods is CARE Pakistan’s mandate and work has started through a vaccination of livestock program, in which 735 animals have already been vaccinated in the Sindh province.
• Oxfam’s programs have reached 1 million people across the affected areas, with the delivery of water, food and shelter materials. 
• Oxfam is holding meetings with affected farmers to assess their needs and begin planning for next planting season. This is part of an overall livelihood-rejuvenation plan that will support survivors to open bank-accounts, buy farming tools and seeds.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, through its member agencies, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in over 120 countries. By coming together under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

                                                                                                 – 30 –

For more information about the crisis, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION or as an alternate means to arrange an interview with agency spokespeople, please contact:

Kieran Green, CARE Canada 
(514) 458-0057

Alexandra Lopoukhine, Oxfam Canada
(613) 850-9723

Justine Lesage, Oxfam-Québec
514 513-0013

Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 273-7134

Canadian Broadcasters and Private Sector Support Pakistan Appeal

23/09/2010

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION welcomes the support of Canadian Broadcasters and Private Sector for relief efforts in Pakistan

Ottawa (23 September, 2010) – Canadian broadcasters and the private sector are lead supporters of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION’s emergency appeal for Pakistan Flood survivors. 

“This cooperation is exactly what is needed to get the message out to more people, reduce fundraising costs and get more aid to where it is needed faster than ever before”, said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada.  “This kind of partnership is similar to the Disasters Emergency Committee model, which has been used in Britain since 1963. There, 13 aid agencies come together and help raise awareness and funds for disaster appeals in partnership with network television and radio broadcasters, banks, the Post Office, BritishTelecom, regional and national press and a range of organizations in the private sector.”

The following broadcasters have rallied behind relief efforts of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION:

• CBC - launched radio and TV spots, directing the public to a dedicated website with information on the crisis and how to support relief operations.  See www.cbc.ca/pakistanrelief for more details.
• CTVglobemedia - donated 30-second television and radio spots and has been running online banners since early August.

“We’ve seen the direct correlation between media visibility of a disaster and resulting donations,” said Nicolas Moyer, coordinator of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION. “The generosity of Canadian broadcasters means more Canadians are aware of the severity of the flooding, the conditions in which survivors are living and the threat of waterborne diseases. These images and updates, along with the direct links to our website have helped harness the generosity of the Canadian people to give during these difficult times.”

So far the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has received more than $3,300,000 in donations, a fraction of what’s needed to provide the necessities of life for survivors of unprecedented flooding in Pakistan. With the Canadian government’s matched donation program, Canadians can be confident that their donations will reach the aid agencies already operating on the ground and help secure much-needed food, clean water, tents and medical supplies. 

Additional support has been provided online to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION’s appeal.  The following are a few other organisations that have supported the appeal with online banners on their websites:

• eBay Canada
• Astral Médias (has also run radio spots)
• Motherforlife.com
• Afriquecanada.tv

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, through its member agencies, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. By coming together under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

                                                               - 30 -

For more information about the crisis, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION or to arrange for an interview with agency spokespeople, please contact:

 
Kieran Green, CARE Canada   
(514) 458-0057


Alexandra Lopoukhine, Oxfam Canada
(613) 850-9723


Justine Lesage, Oxfam-Québec
514 513-0013


Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 273-7134

 

For more information about the crisis or the HUMANITARIAN COALITION visit www.together.ca.

Toronto Star: “Pakistan’s aid lesson”

20/09/2010

Toronto Star editorial exposes some lessons from Pakistan Relief efforts in Canada.

Published in the Toronto Star on Friday, September 17, 2010 (link here )

"By any standard, Canadians are lagging in the drive to help Pakistan’s desperate flood victims. Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government has pledged more than $40 million and has made the welcome decision to extend its program to match private donations until Oct. 3. But private donors have been less generous, with around $10 million pledged to date.

Contrast that with Pakistan’s great need. The UN is seeking $460 million in urgent aid, and billions will be needed to rebuild the country.

Canada’s tepid response is a far cry from our prompt generosity in other disasters, including the Haiti earthquake and Asian tsunami. And while donor fatigue, summer distraction and nagging fears that aid might be wasted have been cited to explain the sluggish response, there may be another factor at work, as well.

Britain’s 13 major aid agencies, including the Red Cross, Oxfam, Christian relief groups, Save the Children and Islamic Relief are simply doing a better job of reaching out to the public. Back in 1963 British agencies banded together under a Disasters Emergency Committee umbrella to pool their efforts and galvanize public support on major crises. With help from the media, banks, phone and postal services, their dynamic outreach efforts are paying off. Alerted to the crisis, British donors are responding.

It’s a model that several leading Canadian aid agencies adopted five years ago, on a smaller scale. CARE Canada, Save the Children, Oxfam Canada and Oxfam-Quebec agreed to pool their efforts as the Humanitarian Coalition to respond to the most serious crises. They’ve been helped by CTVglobemedia, Astral media, eBay and PayPal. In the case of Pakistan, they are helping more than a million people. But the British experience suggests that far more could be achieved.

When moved, Canadians are a compassionate people. But as Pakistan’s crisis is showing, that compassion can’t be taken as a given."

 

********************

The following Letter to the Editor was sent in response to the Toronto Star on Monday, September 20, 2010:

To the Editor,

Re “Pakistan’s aid lesson” Sept. 17 – It is very gratifying to see more and more Canadians, and Canadian media, recognizing the value of what our organizations have been trying to accomplish through the Humanitarian Coalition. As Federal Minister John Baird recently put it, Canadians are known for their “legendary generosity.” By combining our efforts during global emergencies like the Haiti earthquake and the Pakistan floods we are making it easier for Canadians to be generous, and assuring their generosity is used in the most effective way possible to help those in need. We did want to note that in your editorial you missed one key partner who has played a major role in helping us to help the people of Pakistan: the CBC. The work the CBC has done to first of all make Canadians aware of the disaster in Pakistan through their reporting, and secondly through the visibility they have given to the Humanitarian Coalition, is directly responsible for significantly increasing the level of donations from Canadians these past few weeks. The CBC has our gratitude, and we hope in future emergencies we will see other media partners come on board and work together with us as they have. Likewise, as Canadians and the Canadian media show a growing appreciation for what the Humanitarian Coalition represents, we hope other Canadian humanitarian organizations will also see the interests of both Canadians and the people affected by disasters are best served by standing together in times of need, not standing apart.

Kevin McCort, President and CEO, CARE Canada
Robert Fox, Executive Director, Oxfam Canada
Pierre Véronneau, Directeur général, Oxfam-Québec
David Morley, President and CEO, Save the Children Canada

 

Pakistan Update: situation and response

15/09/2010

Ottawa, ON - Six weeks since the onset of unprecedented flooding in Pakistan, the situation remains dire. It's estimated that at the height of flooding nearly a fifth of Pakistan was under water. More than 20.5 million people have been affected, and over 1.8 million homes and 13,000 schools have been damaged or destroyed.

Following the recent announcement made by the Canadian Government to extend the matching fund program to October 3rd, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are poised to expand relief activities. Operations already underway include:

• Save the Children has provided assistance to more than 500,000 children and adults through emergency medical care and distribution of shelter materials, hygiene kits, water purification sachets, food and other supplies.
• Save the Children has established 63 child-friendly spaces to meet the needs of children in affected areas and are working with communities to address issues which threaten children's well-being. Important concerns remain for the health of the floods' youngest survivors as their medical teams are seeing increased cases of pneumonia, diarrhea, malnutrition and malaria-major killers of children in the developing world.
• CARE's work in water distribution, healthcare delivery, distribution of food, and shelter materials has reached 90,568 people so far.
• CARE's outreach includes mobile and stationary health camps, and health and hygiene awareness raising sessions. Reviving livelihoods is CARE Pakistan's mandate and work has started through a vaccination of livestock program, in which 735 animals have already been vaccinated in the Sindh province.
• Oxfam's programs have reached 1 million people across the affected areas, with the delivery of water, food and shelter materials. 
• Oxfam is holding meetings with affected farmers to assess their needs and begin planning for next planting season. This is part of an overall livelihood-rejuvenation plan that will support survivors to open bank-accounts, buy farming tools and seeds.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, through its member agencies, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in over 120 countries. By coming together under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

- 30 -

For more information about the crisis, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION or as an alternate means to arrange an interview with agency spokespeople, please contact:

Kieran Green, CARE Canada
(514) 458-0057

Alexandra Lopoukhine, Oxfam Canada
(613) 850-9723

Justine Lesage, Oxfam-Québec
514 513-0013

Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 273-7134

 

Donation matching deadline extended to Oct. 3rd

12/09/2010

HUMANITARIAN COALITION applauds Canadian government announcement to extend the donation match period for Pakistan Relief to Oct. 3rd

September 12 (Ottawa, ON) - Members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION lauded the Canadian Government's decision to extend the deadline to match gifts in support of relief efforts in Pakistan until October 3rd.

"This decision means many more people affected by the flood will receive the support they need," said CARE President & CEO Kevin McCort. "The message from the Prime Minister is clear -- we need to continue supporting relief efforts happening right now in Pakistan."

"The extension acknowledges that while Canadians have been generous, more can and must be done to save lives and help families recover from this devastating disaster," said Robert Fox, Oxfam Canada's Executive Director. "Matching donations will ensure even more clean water, shelter and food will reach affected communities."

"Having just come back from Pakistan, I can attest how important it is that Canadians are showing their support during this difficult time," said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada. "These added funds will guarantee direct life-saving services to the many affected children and families."

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION would like to extend a special thanks to Government House Leader John Baird who generously donated to the members' response efforts in Pakistan today.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION would also like to thank CTV, CBC, eBay and GlobalTV for their outstanding efforts to profile the urgent needs of the Pakistani people over the course of the last month. They made it easy for caring Canadians to make a donation to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, which has translated in a significant increase of relief services offered to Pakistani survivors.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, through its member agencies, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. By coming together under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

– 30 –
 
For more information about the crisis, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION or as an alternate means to arrange an interview with agency spokespeople, please contact:
 
Kieran Green, CARE Canada   
(514) 458-0057


Alexandra Lopoukhine, Oxfam Canada
(613) 850-9723


Justine Lesage, Oxfam-Québec
514 513-0013


Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 273-7134

Canadian returned from Pakistan available for interviews

08/09/2010

Save the Children Canada's President and CEO returns from Pakistan available for interviews

 

David Morley, co-founder of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and President and CEO of Save the Children Canada, returns to Canada on Tuesday following a visit to the flood-ravaged northern region of Pakistan.

Morley's visit coincides with the one month anniversary of the start of the unprecedented monsoon rains that have left nearly a fifth of Pakistan underwater. "The rivers first burst their banks up in the remote villages of the north, and word couldn't get out to the rest of the world" described Morley. The ensuing landslides ripped villages apart. Then the crest moved south, and farms and villages were under water. Soon more than 20 million people were affected. That is as many Canadians as live west of the Ottawa valley. Homes have been destroyed, crops damaged, livelihoods washed away."

David Morley will be available for interviews starting Wednesday, September 8th.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, through its member agencies, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. By coming together under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

- 30 -

To arrange an interview with David Morley contact:

Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 273-7134

To arrange an interview with agency spokespeople, please contact:

Marie-Eve Bertrand, CARE Canada
(514) 458-0057

Karen Palmer, Oxfam Canada
(613) 240-3047

Justine Lesage, Oxfam-Québec
514 513-0013

Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 291-1683

 

 

 

Pakistan Floods: One-Month Update

02/09/2010

Over one month since the start of the Pakistan flood-disaster, full scope of catastrophe is revealed

Update: As of September 9, CARE Canada has reached around 93,000 people with aid.

September 2, 2010 - One month after the devastating flooding of Pakistan's agricultural heartland began, relief efforts continue at a feverish pace. Survival is not assured for the millions of children and adults now displaced by the floods and coping with waterborne diseases carried by contaminated water and spread through crowded camps.

Due to the scope of this emergency, aid agencies are still struggling to evacuate people to safety and provide them with the necessities of life. Amidst the swirl of emergency relief operations, the extent of devastation is coming into focus.

The facts are alarming:

• 20 million children and adults that have been affected. The death toll currently sits at 1,600 but is expected to climb significantly due to disease, malnutrition and insufficient medical supplies and care providers.
• 8 million children have been affected and are especially vulnerable to waterborne illnesses such as diarrhea- one of the top killers of children in the developing world under normal circumstances.
• More than 500,000 people are suffering from various diseases in camps and may lose their lives if they are not treated in time. In Sindh province, up to seven people lose their lives each day.
• The UN is predicting a total collapse of livelihoods for people who depended on their livestock, an overwhelming reality for the two thirds of flood survivors who are dependent on farming.
• The World Food Programme estimates that floods have damaged 14 per cent of the country's cultivated land. As a result, Pakistan will need help feeding its population for some time.

Funding remains a major obstacle for organizations involved in relief efforts. A recent public opinion poll conducted by Angus Reid shows that despite the government's pledge to match donations made by Canadians, the level of giving lags far behind that following the January earthquake in Haiti.

David Morley, co-founder of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and President and CEO of Save the Children Canada, is in the flood-affected region of Pakistan to call attention to the plight of survivors.

"The one month anniversary following any emergency is a key milestone" Morley said. "But the unprecedented scale of this disaster has made responding especially difficult. Although seasoned aid workers are declaring this the most challenging relief operation ever, we are seeing progress. Right now we must secure the funding needed to ramp up our efforts while there's still a small window of opportunity to prevent an even greater human catastrophe."

HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are on the ground in Pakistan helping to alleviate the suffering of millions. Their activities include:

• Save the Children Canada has declared this a child-survival emergency and is calling attention to the needs of the most vulnerable flood survivors: newborns, young children and the half a million pregnant women, 100,000 of them due to give birth in the coming weeks.
• In one month, Save the Children has reached more than 300,000 children and families with aid. 
• CARE has reached approx 23,176 beneficiaries with health care, non food items and tents.
• CARE, through partner HANDS, has established 12 camps for Internally Displaced Persons and is providing dry food rations, temporary shelter support, non food Item kits and health care. 
• Oxfam has launched rapid relief effort in districts throughout the flood affected region and is currently providing clean water and cooked meals to more than 480,000 people. 
• Oxfam is also digging and clearing wells, building water tanks and tap stands, repairing hand-pumps, establishing emergency latrines and distributing water purification sachets.

- 30 -

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to humanitarian emergencies. By combining under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION makes it easy for Canadians to donate in an emergency. With one joint fundraising apparatus, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

For information and interviews:

David Morley has more than 30 years of community development experience in Latin America and Africa and is well positioned to compare the situation in Pakistan to past major emergencies, including the earthquake in Haiti and the 2005 tsunami.

To schedule interviews with him in Pakistan, please contact:

Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 273-7134

Marie-Eve Bertrand, CARE Canada
(514) 458-0057

Karen Palmer, Oxfam Canada
(613) 240-3047

Justine Lesage, Oxfam-Québec
(514)513-0013

 

Pakistan Floods: Update August 24

24/08/2010

Ottawa (August 24, 2010) - Two weeks into a joint appeal launched by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, flooding is worsening in Pakistan and member agencies and their partners are on the ground in Pakistan helping to alleviate the suffering of millions.

Just a few examples of activities the member organizations are undertaking:

• Save the Children is one of the largest humanitarian agencies responding to the crisis in Pakistan and has reached more than 69,000 children and families with medical care, food, tents, and shelter and hygiene kits. Our goal is to reach two-million people within the next six months.

• As one of the only aid groups able to reach the most remote areas, Save the Children has provided health coverage to a total of 6837 people in Shikarpur and Sukkur districts in five days.

• So far, Oxfam staff on the ground in Pakistan has reached more than 330,000 flood survivors with shelter, hygiene kits, cooked food, cash vouchers and clean water.

• In Ghotki, Oxfam, with the help of its partners LHDP, provided cooked food to 7000 individual, installed 25 latrines and 20 hand pumps and provided 152 hygiene kits.

• CARE has reached 22,279 beneficiaries with health care, non food items and tents. Another 300 tents and non food items are being transported to Swat for distribution.

• CARE is supporting 4 BHUs in Upper Swat and providing PHC services; approximately 12,000 patients (23% men, 31% women and 46% children) have been treated through two mobile teams and four static units.

The contaminated flood waters and poor living conditions threaten to provoke a public health disaster among the flood survivors. More donations are required if the members are to prevent a second wave of unnecessary deaths.

For more information about the response or the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, visit http://www.together.ca. Or contact the member organizations:

Marie-Eve Bertrand, CARE Canada
(514) 458-0057

Karen Palmer, Oxfam Canada
(613) 240-3047

Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 273-7134

 

HUMANITARIAN COALITION welcomes matched funding for Pakistan

22/08/2010

Ottawa (22 August, 2010) - Members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are applauding the Canadian government's decision to offer matched funding for donations made in support of relief efforts in Pakistan. Donations made by individual Canadians from August 2 to September 12 to registered charities will be matched as part of the Government's Pakistan Floods Relief Fund.

"We are literally racing against the clock," said CARE President & CEO Kevin McCort. "Having witnessed the dire conditions that now face millions of survivors, we welcome any effort to motivate and inspire more donations."

"Canadians now have the chance to double their donations. With the death toll rising day by day - and with the rains still falling - we need to act quickly to prevent a second-wave tragedy," said Robert Fox, Oxfam Canada's Executive Director.

So far the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has received more than $650,000 in donations, a fraction of what's needed. A matched donation scheme should give Canadians the confidence that their donations will reach the aid agencies already operating on the ground and help secure much-needed tents, water tanks and medications.

"Children are most at risk in situations like this, where the threat of malaria, typhoid and cholera is high," said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada. "Encouraging Canadians to give helps us raise the money needed to fight hunger and waterborne diseases among the survivors of Pakistan's devastating floods."

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, through its member agencies, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. By coming together under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

For more information about the crisis, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION or to arrange for an interview with agency spokespeople, please contact:

Marie-Eve Bertrand, CARE Canada
(514) 458-0057

Karen Palmer, Oxfam Canada
(613) 240-3047

Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 273-7134

Caroline Boily, Oxfam-Québec
(514) 513-0506

 

Canadian aid workers return from Pakistan

18/08/2010

(August 18, 2010) Kevin McCort, co-founder of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and CEO of CARE Canada, along with Bogdan Dumitru, CARE Canada's VP of International Programs, are returning to Canada after a heart-breaking visit to flood-ravaged regions of Pakistan.

"Now, just returning back from one of the flood stricken areas of Pakistan, I am surprised at the low level of response so far by Canadians", said Kevin McCort. "If there is concern regarding aid actually getting through, Canadians can be rest assured that it is - I have witnessed it first hand. Clean water, shelter, and emergency food is beginning to reach those that need it most, but the need is truly so great! Let's challenge ourselves Canada to step up and pour out our generosity"

McCort, along with his HUMANITARIAN COALITION counterparts, is reaching out to Canadians to ask for further support.

"Canadians are known for their generosity. The world follows our lead when it comes to giving to fund disaster relief and rebuilding" said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada. "That's why it's so important that Canadians give now, because their donations can make a world of difference for the children and their families whose lives have been shattered by this disaster."

The devastation in Pakistan is immense and the level of humanitarian aid needed has now surpassed that of the 2004 tsunami and January's earthquake in Haiti. Canadians have a history of generosity, donating approximately $200 million to relief efforts in the tsunami zone and $250 million for Haiti. Most of these funds were received within the first few weeks of each disaster.

"More rain continues to fall and a public health crisis looms," said Oxfam Canada's Executive Director Robert Fox. "Long-term, flood survivors whose crops were destroyed will face serious food shortages. We need to ensure that everyone who needs it receives help."

HUMANITARIAN COALITION members are working to prevent a new disaster in the form of a public health outbreak. The massive displacement of millions of people and deteriorating living conditions are increasing risks to flood survivors, especially children. Conditions are becoming dire and the monsoon season is forecast to last another month. It is no exaggeration to say that aid agencies are racing against the clock to reach people in desperate need of help.

Canadians can support the Pakistan relief effort by donating at http://www.together.ca.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, through its member agencies, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. By coming together under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

- 30 -

For more information about the crisis, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION or to arrange for an interview with Canadians in Pakistan or agency spokespeople, please contact:

Marie-Eve Bertrand, CARE Canada
(514) 458-0057

Karen Palmer, Oxfam Canada
(613) 240-3047

Caroline Boily, Oxfam-Québec
(514) 513-0506

Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 291-1683

 

World Humanitarian Day

18/08/2010

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION commemorates World Humanitarian Day

Ottawa (19 August, 2010) - Today, on the internationally-recognized World Humanitarian Day, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION (CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam Quebec, Save the Children Canada) takes the time to applaud the incredibly courageous and altruistic actions of humanitarian aid workers across the globe.

Workers in disaster areas are often just as affected by tragedy as those they are devoted to helping. In the face of tremendous adversity, these individuals push aside their own grief and discomfort and plunge into the aid effort. While nearly everyone with the means to do so is fleeing the disaster zone, humanitarians rush into the chaos.

In 2009, 278 humanitarian workers were victims of serious security incidents while carrying out their work. Often, the sacrifices and hardships faced by these workers are understated or lost in the abundance of suffering that characterizes any humanitarian crisis.

In the midst of unimaginable tragedy in flooded Pakistan, thousands of tireless humanitarians are handing out food, water, tents and hygiene products and providing medical care to the millions of Pakistanis living in a nightmare. While the people of Pakistan rely on these people for survival, we also count on humanitarians to deliver our messages of support and of hope. There can be no better time than this World Humanitarian Day to reflect on the selflessness of these heroes

For more information about Canadian humanitarians working abroad or to learn more about the HUMANTIARIAN COALITION, visit http://www.together.ca or contact one of the member agencies:

Marie-Eve Bertrand, CARE Canada
(514) 458-0057

Karen Palmer, Oxfam Canada
(613) 240-3047

Caroline Boily, Oxfam-Québec
514-513-0506

Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 291-1683

                                           *            *            *

"I do all I can to make sure I deliver the water to the camps. It is important because there is a population living there. You have to serve them. No matter what time it is, we have to deliver water to them. It's our job. We can't let people suffer. We provide a regular service; we don't let them suffer at all."

-Roland, an Oxfam water tanker driver in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, who is living in an tent on the runway, himself a survivor of the earthquake.

 

 

"To be a humanitarian worker wasn't always my lifelong dream - but then I lived through disaster. As a native of Croatia who experienced the devastation of war, I learned what kind of difference even the simplest of things can make for people who have been beaten-down by tragedy. It was then that I knew I would devote my life to helping those short-handed by fate needing a hand-up out of misery. These last 18 years working in the midst of humanitarian disasters have been incredibly rewarding. It is amazing how even while working in some of the saddest places on earth, I can be uplifted seeing that what I've done has made someone's life a little easier or even brought a smile to their face."

-Mia Vukojevic, Oxfam Canada, Haiti

"I always knew I'd be in job that let me help kids. I started as a teacher and loved it, but always felt that I wanted my playground to be bigger. Working in Haiti fulfills everything I want in my career: an opportunity to work with people who are striving to make their lives better, a dynamic team of colleagues dedicated beyond the call, and a playground that is bigger than I ever imagined. When I take a moment to look at the children around me, I see their hope, their strength and their resiliency - and I know just how important it is that I keep doing what I'm doing."

-Elysia Nisan, Save the Children, Haiti

 

“I always wanted to combine my work with travel and discovery and I was able to find that balance with Humanitarian Work. I’ll call it human work. In reality, it allows me to develop as a manager, negotiator, logistician, team leader etc., but it is still profoundly human because it encourages contact with people from different culture and fosters dialogue and the sharing of experiences. It helps gradually dissolve cultural barriers simply by bringing people together who want to get to know each other. Despite everything, this aspect of cultural encounters is one of the greatest challenges. That is to say, to be able to balance the need for efficiency while retaining your humanity and not forgetting that your local colleagues are almost certainly affected by the situation your organization is attempting to respond to.”

                                           -Caroline Saint-Mleux, CARE Canada, Haiti

 

 

Pakistan death toll may rise without more support

17/08/2010

HUMANITARIAN COALITION fears death toll will rise without increased support from the public

(Islamabad, August 15, 2010) With the first case of cholera reported in Pakistan, members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are imploring Canadians to continue showing their generosity for survivors of the country's devastating floods.

"The massive displacement of people, potential for the spread of disease and deteriorating living conditions are increasing risks to very vulnerable infants and children," said Mohammed Qazilbash, Save the Children's Canadian spokesperson in Pakistan. "The monsoon season could last another month, so conditions will become increasingly dire. It is no exaggeration to say that we are racing against the clock to reach people in desperate need of help."

So far, $200,000 has been raised to support the flood relief efforts of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Quebec and Save the Children Canada, who make up the HUMANITARIAN COALITION.

But more is desperately needed.

"I've been travelling through the disaster zone and I've seen whole villages, riverside roads, bridges, power stations and the entire center of a town, gone. Not flooded, or damaged, but totally gone. It's going to take a massive global investment - both from governments and ordinary people - to help this country recover. So far that investment is not forthcoming," said Kevin McCort, a co-founder of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and President and CEO of CARE Canada, who is currently in Pakistan.

"This is a plea to Canadians: the people of Pakistan need you now as much as the people of Haiti did in those months after the earthquake."

Long-term, the country will struggle with rebuilding lost roads, schools and hospitals but the immediate concern is the risk posed by drinking contaminated water. With millions of survivors crammed into makeshift shelters, the risk of spreading infectious disease skyrockets.

CARE-supported mobile health clinics have treated more than 5,200 patients. Nearly 5,000 survivors in Nowshera and Charsaddah districts have received tents and non-food relief items including hygiene kits and mosquito nets. Oxfam is providing emergency clean water and sanitation facilities, hygiene kits, jerry cans and buckets to survivors. Save the Children has reached more than 40,200 people with emergency medical care and distribution of tents, shelter kits, hygiene kits, food and supplies, as well as supporting seven government health facilities and two mobile clinics.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, through its member agencies, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. By coming together under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

Canadians can support the Pakistan relief effort by donating at http://www.together.ca.

For more information about the crisis, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION or to arrange for an interview with Canadians in Pakistan or agency spokespeople, please refer to the contact information in the right-hand column.

 

Canadian representatives of HUMANITARIAN COALITION arrive in Pakistan

13/08/2010

HUMANITARIAN COALITION representatives from Canada arrive in Pakistan - available for media

August 13, 2010 (Islamabad, Pakistan) - Kevin McCort, co-founder of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and President and CEO of CARE Canada and an aid worker with over 25 years experience in global emergency zones, is on the ground in the flood-affected region of Pakistan. Kevin is available immediately for interviews with Canadian media to describe what he is seeing, and what relief efforts are underway.

Kevin has led relief efforts in Somalia, Haiti, Tanzania, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Bosnia, and this year was in Haiti to observe the relief and reconstruction work following the earthquake. He is well positioned to compare the situation in Pakistan to past major emergencies.

Bogdan Dumitru, who has over 17 years experience managing major humanitarian and development missions around the world will also be on the ground and available for interviews to address technical aspects of the crisis in Pakistan. Bogdan has worked in some of the most troubled regions on earth: Liberia's civil war and the Balkans conflicts in the 1990s, in Central Africa, Kosovo, Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Chad and Sudan. In 2006 he was part of the relief mission helping the survivors of the tsunami disaster.

Also, Muhammad Qazilbash, Save the Children's country director for Pakistan, is already on the ground in Pakistan now and available for interviews. He is a Pakistani Canadian from Aylmer, Quebec, with more than 15 years experience in international development, specializing in emergency relief.

The members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION also have other spokespeople available for interviews in Pakistan and should be contacted directly for more information.

- 30 -

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to humanitarian emergencies. By combining under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION makes it easy for Canadians to donate in an emergency. With one joint fundraising apparatus, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

For information and interviews:

In Pakistan :
• Kevin McCort, Care Canada: 613-286-9506 or
• Bogdan Dumitru, Care Canada : 514-531-3775 or
• Mohammed Qazilbash, Save the Children : + 92 301 850 4790 or +92 51 265 3442.

In Canada:
• For information about Kevin McCort and Bogdan Dimitru:
Marie-Eve Bertrand, CARE Canada, (514) 458-0057,
• For information about Mohammed Qazilbash:
Denise Koulis, Save the Children: (647) 273-7134 or

For more information about the HUMANITARIAN COALITION: http://www.together.ca

 

Blogs & pictures from Pakistan

12/08/2010

News, information and stories from the Pakistan flood disaster zone.

 

November 29, 2010

Pakistan Floods: Oxfam prepares for winter with cash-for-work quilts, sweaters

Several months after Pakistan was hit by devastating floods, aid agencies are warning that the approaching winter could usher in a new crisis, with fears that flood-affected families in the north, who lost homes and belongings, will be ill-prepared to deal with sub-zero temperatures. 

Harsh winter climates could lead to a steep increase in illnesses, including pneumonia and other respiratory diseases. In preparation, Oxfam has been distributing thousands of winter kits to some of the worst flood-hit communities in Upper Swat, in Kyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK) – areas often cut off by heavy snows and where temperatures can fall well below zero. 

These kits – containing quilts, sweaters, shawls, and socks – are being packed up and sent out to some of the most vulnerable flood-hit communities in northern Pakistan, including female -headed households  
 
 “The winter is going to double their miseries,” said Imran Khan, Oxfam’s public health promotion team leader in Swat and Shangla.  “Already, their coping mechanism does not exist. Now, when winter comes, it’s more or less death for them. The disease rate is high, they don’t have any household equipment to cope in this situation. The only way to help them against winter is these kits.”

Through a cash-for-work program, women in Ingorederai village are making winter quilts to be sent to flood survivors living in some of the worst-hit areas. The cash-for-work project, organized by Oxfam and its local partner, Lasoona, is giving women a chance to earn money for basic necessities and also helps to take their minds off their daily difficulties.

Women participating in the program said they’re happy to be able to work, as it’s a rare chance to earn some much-needed money.  “We don’t have any money for medical bills,” said 65-year-old Malyara Gujar.    

“We are poor people. Everything we had was damaged in the floods.  Everything.”
 
“I’ve got young children at home and my husband died four years ago,” said Pervin Gujar, 40.  “We still have a mud house, but everything was damaged in the floods.  I have an old father-in-law at home.  It’s been hard to earn a daily wage, a regular source of income/”

Another cash-for work project pays women for their knitting skills, paying them 5,6000 rupees after they’ve completed two sweaters.  
 
“I’m very happy to get this cheque because my husband is unemployed.  We have had to take out so many loans,” said Fatima Matkhankel, who is 10 months pregnant.
 
“We should have clean quilts and warm clothes for the children. But we have nothing.  Everything was damaged in the floods. My children are sick now because of the cold,” Hajera Mulian, a mother of six.

While most of the sweaters and quilts are heading to vulnerable communities in upper Swat, some sweaters are being distributed to orphans in Mingora.

High in the Swat mountains, the snows are already visible.  It’s a race against time to get help to the people who need it most  – so at least they have some insulation against the bitter cold.

******

November 1, 2010

Blog from Caroline Gluck, Oxfam

Rebirth among the flood ruins

Location: Dadu district, Sindh Province, Pakistan

The road heading towards Qaimjatoi, in Dadu district in Pakistan’s southern Sindh looked like it was literally disappearing into the river. A week ago, it was impassable; now, it was still surrounded by flooded rice fields, but most of the road had, at last, re-emerged from the waters.

All around us, rice fields and trees were submerged in water.

We were going to meet 18 year old Sakina Ghaincha, living with hundreds of other displaced families on a narrow ridge of an elevated embankment. The families are living here in makeshift wooden shelters, with straw mats hung over the top as a roof. Locally-made colourful hand-stitched patchwork cotton quilts, called rili, were strung along the sides of some shacks, affording families a little privacy and also some warmth when night-time temperatures drop.
Many people could see their flooded and damaged villages from the elevated bank, but couldn’t get back to them yet because the flood waters were still several feet high. For most, boat travel remained the only way in and out.

Sakina comes from Qaimjatoi, just a kilometer from where she’s sheltering. Heavily pregnant, she struggled through knee-high waters when the floods came in August. Two days later, she gave birth to a baby boy, Ghous Bux, in the open air.

“He’s our ray of hope in these difficult times”, she told me, shyly. “I was so happy after my son’s birth. It’s a miracle for us”.

Her son was her first child. There were no health facilities; but Sakina was lucky to find a traditional birth attendant who had also fled a flood-hit village and was sheltering on the same embankment.

Sakina also said she was very pleased to receive hygiene help and advice from Oxfam and its partner, SAFWCO, (the Sindh Agricultural and Forestry Workers Co-ordinating Organisation), who have been working with the community to keep the area clean, distribute hygiene kits, provide water and build toilets.

“They were the first organisations to work here. We’ve sat down with the health workers to hear about the importance of handwashing – how it can prevent disease – and good hygiene.

“Now I can properly take care of my son and give him a wash with soap. We have buckets to store water and I can take a bath. We had nothing before.”

Sakina smiles as her son wakes and wants feeding. She’s determined to provide him everything she never had – including an education, a chance to get qualifications and a good job.

Despite her joy at being a mother, Sakina worries about the future. Her family house was completely destroyed in the floods. Her husband, a tenant farmer, will be unlikely to be able to begin farming his land for at least six months as it is still under water. They lost all their rice crops just before harvest-time.

She also feels anxious at the lack of privacy she has when she breast-feeds her new-born son in her road-side shack. Trucks, motorbikes, cars and animal-drawn carts all drive past as we talk.

“We have no idea what the future will bring. We just live here day to day. If we go back home, there’s nothing for us; and nowhere to live. We’re worried about finding work to earn money to feed our family”.

The daily difficulties and the approaching winter months are a worry not just for Sakina but for tens of thousands of other families in Sindh – the region that was the worst-affected by the floods, and where more than a million still remain displaced because stagnant flood waters still remain stubbornly high.

Many are staying in large tented cities; others in makeshift shelters, like the one Sakina is staying in, on higher ground, waiting to be able to return home when the waters recede.

They’ve lost their homes and livelihoods. It’s been a struggle to survive; and now they’re not sure how they’re going to be able to feed their families over the next few months. It will be several months before many can even begin preparing their land for planting; and a year of more before they will be able to earn money from their harvests. Families are getting themselves further into debt and are becoming increasingly desperate.

“My only hope right now is my son”, Sakina told me. “He is our hope. Because of my son I have hope.”

***

09/16/2010

Blog 3 from Jane Beesley, Oxfam

A very long way to go

Location: Shikarpur District, Sindh Province, Pakistan

We have heard from Islamabad that there are rumours the flood is receding in Shikarpur and other areas in Sindh Province. We decide to try and go and see. If true then our teams are going to have to start planning how we can support people returning to their villages - which in effect means we will need to give two different types of aid: one for people who are displaced and won't be able to return home quickly; and another for those returning to destroyed homes and livelihoods. I head out of town with Zalynn and Abidah from our livelihoods team.

Once in the rural areas we soon see that the water has only gone down by a few inches. There's a very long way to go. We stop and have a brief chat with some people, living under plastic sheeting, close to the roadside. A local man tells us it will be at least a month before the waters go down to normal levels. We go as far as we can before the road disappears under water. The floodwater here doesn't look dramatic; no gushing, roaring torrents, strong currents sweeping all before it. This is a plain area and the water lies flat and still. A row of telegraph poles stretch out into to the distance, strangely marooned, casting shadows in the still water surrounding them. There are remains of mud houses crumbling and dissolving in the water. In places we can see small green shoots poking out of the water but these are not the green shoots of recovery or hope - these are the rice fields. The crop, just weeks from being harvested, has been totally lost. Rice is the main crop in this area and with only one crop a year the flood is a devastating blow after months and months of hard work. There will not be an other rice harvest until this time next year, and only then if people can return home, are able to clear the land, buy seed and plant in time. In the meantime, the question is what do they live on? How do they earn a living? Where do they live?

In the distance we see a few people living on a small patch of land. They are probably staying there to protect what remains of their property, and livestock. Otherwise, what was once a thriving village has a slightly eerie air. Walking back up the road to the car all that can be heard are the birds...

This trip has made me realise the enormity of the situation here in Sindh. Not only do we need to help people immediately, but also as they start to return home to rebuild their lives. Governments, NGOs like Oxfam and the UN need to be prepared to assist the people here in Pakistan for months and years to come.

* * *

Blog 2 from Jane Beesley, Oxfam

‘...the height of the water is more than the height of a human being.'

Location: Tented Camp Number 3, Kairpur, Sindh Province, Pakistan

The morning is spent walking round Camp Number 3 with Oxfam's Public Health Team. They are registering people for the much needed, and asked for, hygiene kits (containing items like soap, towels, buckets), which will be distributed over the next few days. The day is once again almost unbearable hot and humid. Close by some Oxfam latrines are almost completed. They are raised up on bricks due to the high water level, and steps and handrails are now being constructed to make it easier for children, the elderly and people with disabilities to use them. As we walk away from the latrines a woman comes up and asks if we can give her any shoes. She points to her feet and explains she lost everything in the flood. The ground is hard and it hurts her feet, which are now swollen. She takes us to visit her tent, which she shares with eight others. They've one simple, narrow, wooden bed frame where one of the adults, who is sick, lies resting. The rest of them sleep on the ground. ‘The ground is very hard to sleep on. It's sometimes wet and there are insects.' They hope that someone will give them mats to sleep on.

Further along the row of tents I meet several men. Ali Khan talks about the situation back in the area he's from, ‘the height of the water is more than the height of a human being.' It's a statement that makes you stop and think. When he talks about their current situation he tells me, ‘We don't have anything - we can't even buy a toffee for a kid because we don't even have a penny in our pockets.'

Withal Brunei tells me he was living very happily before the flood. He emphasises that he never used to ask anyone for anything. Now he has to ask anyone he meets to help him, ‘...it's this miserable condition that we now find ourselves in that is making me ask for these things. I have nothing and there is no one else to give us some little hope for the future.' On top of everything else people's dignity is also being compromised. Whilst talking to Ali and Withal, I notice a man behind him. He's holding a limp, crying child in his arms. The man moves forward as soon as possible. He's very distressed and wants to tell his story. While Shari Mohammed talks, for once, everyone else is silent, except Shakat, aged 1, who is crying. ‘My wife has gone. My wife has drowned in the water and I'm left with these four kids. She is drowned and now I'm left with nothing. This child needs breast milk but he's not getting any kind of milk, so he's always crying. I have nothing to give him and now this little boy is crying for his mother. Everything we owned is gone. We have nothing to eat. We used to have buffalos, cows and goats, but all was lost in the flood. Whatever we had at home is all gone. The flood has actually destroyed our lives. We are poor people and now we have nothing.' After he's spoken he gets up and leaves. What he had to say hangs in the air...

There are so many people here - each with their own heartbreaking story. The need is so great and there is so much that needs to be done. Yet international aid is starting to trail off. The UN floods appeal, which now doesn't even truly reflect the scale of need, is only 67% funded. With 21 million people affected by this flood, we can't turn our back on people like Ali, Withal and Shari. We need to be here and help people to regain their dignity and rebuild their lives.

* * *

Blog 1 from Jane Beesley, Oxfam

Location: Shikarpur District, Sindh Province, Pakistan

Breakfast arrives at 5.45am and we're ready to go at 6 am. It's already hot and temperatures will hit 45 degrees for much of the day. We're travelling out to some of the camps, based in schools, where Oxfam's distributing cash cheques to people displaced by the flood. We pass people living along the roadside, others in more formal tented camps - its painfully obvious how little they have. Water buffaloes, who should be plump and round, looking like they're made of polished ebony, now have hip, and other bones, sticking out. They wander down the road in their search for food. As we drive on the scale and number of displaced people slowly starts to sink in.

On the flight down from Islamabad, despite cloud cover, I could just make out the vast extent of the flood going on and on, seemingly never ending.

The first place we visit is a school where around 360 families are living. All the families are going to receive a cheque for 5,000 Rupees (around £38-40) to help support them through the next two or three weeks. I meet Raiza, a petite young woman of 21 or 22, who had just received her cheque. She tells me they'd lost everything in the flood, they ‘...didn't even have time to save some crockery'. She adds, ‘I'm worried about my children...at the moment they are not sick but they are weak because they don't have enough food to eat.' Before we leave the camp she comes and finds us again, this time bringing her children to meet us. She says she is going to spend most of the money on food for the children.

At all the camps we visit we are met with a warm welcome, and despite the little food they have they still offer visitors a share. I'm obviously hot, and very pink and pretty damp. Women offer me their own, handmade fans and several gather to fan us. We try and explain they don't have to do this, but they can't understand why we want to stop them. Despite the circumstances we are still guests and should be looked after.

The schools are crammed with people. Not built for so
many, or for living in, the conditions are bad. There are thousands of flies, most of the children have scabies and there's a lack of food, and widespread sickness - mainly diarrhoea. We hear that most of the money from Oxfam's distribution is being spent on food, medicine, medical fees and repaying debts incurred in getting here - a place safety from the floods.

My colleagues are working extremely long hours. Getting up very early and working through to 11, 12 at night, the heat and humidity are constant, and there is little or no privacy as bedrooms double up as offices. This is the fourth week of the crisis in Sindh, and staff have had no respite. Everyone knows the size and urgency of the need, and as my colleague Zalynn says, ‘our own conditions are nothing compared to having to live in a camp 24/7 in the 45 degree heat...'

Resources are thin on the ground, and yet we know we can respond to this. We can change people's living conditions, we can help people stay healthy, we can support people's eventual return home. But we desperately need the resources to do so.

 

09/08/2010

David Morley's Blog
President and CEO of Save the Children Canada

September 8,2010

Here is something I've learned while in Pakistan. I understand better now why the media is having such a hard time telling the story of the floods here in the Swat Valley.

Except for a few places here and there up the sides of the valley, you can't see the destruction. Why? Because it is here that the houses and shops and fields were just swept away. The Swat River changed its course in the flood, but in many places, if I had not been
told, I wouldn't have known that a village had been here, a farm there, a shop over there - because there is nothing left but rocks and the river, flowing on as it always has. Only the ongoing series of destroyed bridges - big bridges, like ones joining the Island of Montreal to
Laval, Ottawa to Gatineau, or across the Bow River in Calgary - show just how bad the destruction was.

But in our sound-bite world, it is almost impossible to tell the story of these people - how they suffered through the tensions of increasing extremism, the horror of an armed conflict that forced them to flee, and now, upon their return home, were met by the destructive
power of this flood.

So we have to listen before we can tell. We have listen to the farmer, receiving his tent at the distribution point: "My fields were washed away, now we are living with my brother and his family."

We have to listen, and we have to see. See things like the hopeful eyes of that girl at the health post when she said "this year, I thought I'd finally get to go back to school. Now with the floods, I just don't know."

Those eyes, that wish, tell the story hidden behind the bustle of a city, with its signs of a community, of a whole valley, trying to return to a normal life. Those eyes, that wish, are why our Pakistani colleagues here at Save the Children are working 14 hour days - and in the middle of the Ramadan fast! - to get food and supplies and clean water and medical care to as many people as possible. That is why we want to help the farmers and restock the small shops and open up the schools once again. So the hopes of that girl can be fulfilled.

Misery is not distributed fairly in this world, but life goes on

September 6, 2010

It is a beautiful morning. Men in flowing cotton robes walk on their early morning errands through the quiet streets - it will be bustling later on, but we have got up early to go and see some of the work of Save the Children.

As we make our way the destruction becomes more and more apparent. Torrents of water came through here - one of our staff showed me a video he made on the day the river burst its banks bringing logs and rocks crashing through, knocking buildings down and ripping villages apart like a disaster movie. But it was no movie - this happened here, in this beautiful place, and the half destroyed buildings and every bridge in the valley was destroyed - are a testament to the destructive force of the flooding.

Swat used to be a safe place, a tourist destination for Pakistanis, but in the past five years that has changed. Insurgent groups recruited and mobilized unemployed youth who brought their war to the area. As we made our way, we pass bombed out schools and destroyed police stations - the work of IEDs and suicide bombers - along with persimmon orchards and flood-damaged homes.

After intensive fighting, the area was sealed off from the rest of the world and most of the people fled. The cruelest part of all is that they had started to come back - to rebuild their lives. Then, just a month ago, the flood came.

Because Save the Children had already been working in the area, trying to reestablish schools and help families rebuild their livelihoods, we were able to spring into action. Soon we were distributing non-food items and tents. Our food distribution started by giving food we got from WFP, but as local markets have recovered in the weeks since the floods, we have switched to a voucher system. Our field staff assess the villages and find the families who have lost homes, or are child-headed households, and they get food vouchers. In a dark room in the back of an alleyway we talk with the sector coordinator. "People prefer the food vouchers. This way they have some choice in what food they may eat - they don't just have to put up with what we give them." Our teams work closely with local merchants, quickly redeeming the spent vouchers for cash - that is a way to make sure that merchants will support the program. And in this way the money stays in the community and stimulates, not suppresses, the local economy.

Outside of the distribution point I stop to watch some boys play cricket, but as a crowd gathers our country director comes up to me and says: "Let's keep moving, we don't want someone to make a phone call about the visitors". A year ago this region had been an insurgent stronghold. The army presence is very visible here. Frequent checkpoints, pillar boxes and guns mounted on pick-up trucks.

We make our way to a health post Save the Children has been supporting. In the yard some men are teaching people how to use sachets of water purifier to make drinking water safe. I'm told diarrhea cases have increased almost twofold. Until we get enough wells cleaned, water must be purified so more children don't get sick.

Children play outside the health post. "I had hoped to go to school this year," said one girl. "With all the trouble I haven't been to school for three years. I really thought this was my year - and then the flood. Now I don't know what will happen." Save the Children wants to help the government schools get open as soon as possible.

At all our points - the distribution point for household items, the voucher distribution room, the health post and the child-friendly spaces -a complaints procedure is clearly spelled out and posted in many places. Big posters outline what we are supposed to do - treat the beneficiaries with courtesy and respect, and what we expect in return - an equal level of respect. There is a phone number where complaints can be made by calling or by SMS. I ask my colleague how many complaints we receive.

"A few a week. Usually from people who feel they should have received something, so we re-assess, but usually we decide we were correct in the first place. But one person complained about the lack of clean water here at this clinic, so that is why we bored that well there. Then there was one fellow who called us saying he had received too many household kits so we should train our field workers better." He laughs. "I liked that one."

On our way back talk turns to our plans for early recovery - because we will soon be moving into that stage. We need to reconnect with the Parent Teacher Councils to help schools start up again and recharge our teacher training program. We need to assess the damage to this harvest, and the impact on the winter crops, too - farmers will need seed and tools. And local shops - the smallest ones - need some help to restock their stores so that those families can begin earning again.

There are certainly strong signs of a bustling community life beginning again. It's hard to believe that a year ago this was a place with hundreds of thousands of displaced people and savage fighting. "That's right," says my colleague who coordinates all our work in the area.

"All this activity we see here - there was nothing at all. Everyone who wasn't fighting had fled. Now they have come back."

Silently we look out the car. Quietly, Greg, a Save the Children colleague, says "misery is not distributed fairly in this world."

"But," adds the area coordinator, "life does go on." Yes it does. And I have such respect for the people of the region who are determined to rebuild their lives - the conflict didn't stop them forever; they returned to their homes. I don't think they will let the flood stop them either. But they need support to rebuild their lives, and I feel privileged to be working with a group of people who are doing such a fine job of offering that support.

Save the Children's emergency office in Islamabad

September 3, 2010

The rains started in earnest six weeks ago. Hard, heavy and long-lasting monsoons the wettest in living memory. And then the rivers started flooding their banks. First it was up in the remote villages of the north, and word couldn't get out to the rest of the world. Then the crest moved south, and farms and villages were under water. Soon more than 20 million people were affected. 20 million people - that is as many Canadians as live west of Ottawa valley. Homes were destroyed, crops damaged, livelihoods washed away.

"We were all slow to respond," a colleague here told me. "It rained hard for three days -and on the third day when I woke up and had six inches of water outside my house, I knew that if it was this serious here in Islamabad, it would be worse in the north. But we weren't ready for the size of this, nobody was. First we estimated 2 million people affected, then 4million, then 6 - our projections just kept going up."

This delayed response - the realization of the numbers and the severity slowly growing day by day - had a major impact on the world's response as well. Until people and governments around the world realized the catastrophic impact of the floods they were slow to respond. But now there are increasing levels of support coming in, and that means our work in health, child protection, supporting livelihoods and education is growing.

Save the Children was already the largest NGO in Pakistan before the floods, but in the last four weeks we have hired more people to help distribute survival kits, staff mobile clinics, set up child-friendly spaces and more. Last year, when we responded to the internally displaced person crisis we opened an emergency office here in Islamabad, and when I went there today it was humming.

People have set up work spaces on tables, and just about anywhere there is a flat surface there are papers and charts and laptops. The walls are covered with maps of Pakistan and thumbtacks are stuck into the villages in the regions where we are working - Swat Valley, Punjab, Sindh. White boards keep track of people's movements and the progress of the various projects in 45 sub-offices around the country.

At one end of a colleague describes the process of shifting thinking and activities towards recovery - as the water recedes clinics are still standing, but the equipment is destroyed, and he is concerned about increased reports of malaria. In front of a computer another team member looks at statistics showing how our cash voucher efforts are going, and discusses ideas for helping restore livelihoods. A small group sits around a flip chart planning for a coordination meeting with Oxfam and Care tomorrow.

These are impressive people. At a meeting with a Canadian government official, our Emergency Director describes how our teams have gone into some of the hardest to reach places - sometimes walking for 12 hours to remote villages to bring them relief. "We distribute the food well," he says. "I hate seeing those pictures of food and supplies being dropped from trucks or helicopters - when that happens you have no way of knowing if the elderly and the child-headed households are getting any help at all. We go into places that are hardest to reach - but we distribute carefully, and we know that the weakest are gettinghelp."

And this weekend I'll get to see them in action when we head up to the Swat Valley.

On the plane to Pakistan

September 3, 2010

The people of Pakistan have had more than their fair share of trouble, and their history of hardship is reflected in some hard statistics. Half of the population is illiterate and only half the children in the country are enrolled in primary school. Nearly one child in ten will die before her fifth birthday - an infant mortality rate almost 20 times that of Canada - and one quarter of children are underweight for their age.

Save the Children has been working in the country for more than 30 years. Together with our local partners (because if you don't work with local partners you cannot build sustainability) our programs have focused on improving education and health, increasing family income through credit assistance and business advice, and supported the creation of laws to protect children from violence.

And we've had successes, too. In Battagram District we've worked with 100 schools to help train teachers, develop Parent Teacher Councils that then work to improve school facilities - and we've seen school enrolment increase by 34 per cent. We've trained Lady Health Workers who provide community-based health services to rural women, and strengthened the clinics and hospitals and we've seen the number of people getting health services go up by the thousands. When fighting intensified along the Afghan border last year, 2 million people fled their homes in the North-West Frontier, and we were able to provide healthcare, relief supplies and emergency food to nearly half a million people, including 270,000 children - many of those in remote scattered villages where few others are providing
support. But the people fleeing the violence had to live somewhere - and so 5,000 schools became shelters for whole communities, putting new strains on the education system.

And all this - the large-scale health and education programs to help some of the world's poorest children - all this was already underway when, just a few weeks ago, these same children and families were hit by the heaviest monsoon rains in 90 years, and the biggest disaster in living memory began to unfold. I cannot imagine how we have and will continue to respond - I just know that we must.

 

09/07/2010

Blog from Mubashar Hasan, Save the Children

The children of the floods

I was on my way to Nowshera district of Khaybar Pakthunkhawa Province in Pakistan to look at how children were affected by the floods. In my mind I was preparing for an emotional day.

I'd read news of children affected by hunger, diarrhea, skin and other diseases. I told myself that I needed to pass my day in professional manner and keep my emotions in check.

However, what I found was different than I expected. I was mesmerized by the bravery and creativity of the children in the camps. They were suffering from many problems and deprived of basic human rights, but were standing high with smiles on their faces amidst all odds.

"We run in this camp, we jump into the muddy water next to the camp and love to play cricket everyday," said Rejagul, a fourth grade student who was living in an unofficial camp set up at Mundhighaz camp where Oxfam is working hard to provide clean drinking water.

Rejagul's school is closed. It's one of the more than 8,000 schools destroyed or damaged in the catastrophic flood in Pakistan. Rejagul was standing among a group of children who surrounded me amid midday scorching heat in a field where UNHCR had installed tents.

Their clothes were dirty and filthy and they didn't have any shoes. Many parts of their bodies were bearing signs of skin diseases. Some of them said the unbearable heat and flies made their life miserable, but they were adjusting themselves to their circumstances and had worked out plans to have fans.

I spent around an hour and half in this camp discovering how the children were passing their time. Like children everywhere, they were playing: blowing bubbles and playing noughts and crosses.

It requires a lot of courage to smile when there is little or no food to eat, no home to live, very little clean water to drink, no bed to sleep in and no air conditioning or fan to cool down the burning temperature.

The way these children were handling these floods was truly inspirational. The world needs to act to keep the spirit of these children high by proving aid to re-construct their homes, schools and lives.

09/03/2010

First-hand account from David Morley, co-founder of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and President and CEO of Save the Children Canada.

Save the Children’s emergency office in Islamabad

The rains started in earnest six weeks ago.  Hard, heavy and long-lasting monsoons - the wettest in living memory.  And then the rivers started flooding their banks. First it was up in the remote villages of the north, and word couldn’t get out to the rest of the world.  Then the crest moved south, and farms and villages were under water.  Soon more than 20 million people were affected.  20 million people – that is as many Canadians as live west of Ottawa.  Homes were destroyed, crops damaged, livelihoods washed away.

“We were all slow to respond,” a colleague here told me.  “It rained hard for three days – and on the third day when I woke up and had six inches of water outside my house, I knew that if it was this serious here in Islamabad, it would be worse in the north.  But we weren’t ready for the size of this, nobody was.  First we estimated 2 million people affected, then 4 million, then 6 - our projections just kept going up.”

This delayed response – the realization of the numbers and the severity slowly growing day by day – had a major impact on the world’s response as well.  Until people and governments around the world realized the catastrophic impact of the floods they were slow to respond.  But now there are increasing levels of support coming in, and that means our work in health, child protection, supporting livelihoods and education is growing.

Save the Children was already the largest NGO in Pakistan before the floods, but in the last four weeks we have hired more people - to help distribute survival kits, staff mobile clinics, set up child-friendly spaces and more.  Last year, when we responded to the internally displaced person crisis we opened an emergency office here in Islamabad, and when I went there today it was humming. 

People have set up work spaces on tables, and just about anywhere there is a flat surface there are papers and charts and laptops.  The walls are covered with maps of Pakistan and thumbtacks are stuck into the villages in the regions where we are working – Swat Valley, Punjab, Sindh.  White boards keep track of people’s movements and the progress of the various projects in 45 sub-offices around the country. 

At one end of a colleague describes the process of shifting thinking and activities towards recovery – as the water recedes clinics are still standing, but the equipment is destroyed, and he is concerned about increased reports of malaria.  In front of a computer another team member looks at statistics showing how our cash voucher efforts are going, and discusses ideas for helping restore livelihoods.  A small group sits around a flip chart planning for a coordination meeting with Oxfam and Care tomorrow.

These are impressive people.  At a meeting with a Canadian government official, our Emergency Director describes how our teams have gone into some of the hardest to reach places – sometimes walking for 12 hours to remote villages to bring them relief.  “We distribute the food well,” he says.  “I hate seeing those pictures of food and supplies being dropped from trucks or helicopters – when that happens you have no way of knowing if the elderly and the child-headed households are getting any help at all.  We go into places that are hardest to reach – but we distribute carefully, and we know that the weakest are getting help.”

And this weekend I’ll get to see them in action when we head up to the Swat Valley.

08/23/2010

First-hand account from Oxfam's Qasim Berech.

Qasim Berech, 30, is a public health expert with Oxfam in Pakistan. He travelled to Upper Swat on 16 August.

Many parts of the Upper Swat Valley have been cut off from the rest of the country after severe floods swept through the region. Most of the region's roads and bridges have been destroyed by the rising floodwaters. For hundreds of thousands of people, helicopter drops have been the only way to get aid since the waters started to rise.

Qasim says: "People in Upper Swat Valley have been living in a nightmare since the floods began. They've been almost completely cut off from the rest of the country.
What most concerns me as an Oxfam worker is there's a chronic shortage of clean drinking water in many places. Worse still, some people are desperate enough to drink water from the river. The pipes which normally bring them fresh water from springs have been swept away by the floods.

It's a vicious circle. People need water. There's no clean safe water so they drink from the river. But the river water isn't clean and we're worried about outbreaks of disease. We're already hearing that people are suffering more and more from diarrhoea.

It's now about two and half weeks since the floods began and the waters have finally started to recede in Swat. Today, we have decided that it is time to try to get through and see for ourselves the situation on the ground.

My team of five plus myself begin our journey from Mangora in Lower Swat to reach the city of Bahrain, a city in Upper Swat. It's been cut off for weeks and is only accessible on foot.

We are carrying with us 100,000 sachets of water purifier powder, closely packed into 400 small cartons. Each sachet will make ten litres of clean water in just 20 minutes. It can make the difference between a sick child and a healthy child.

We leave Mangora at 9am by van. The rain is still coming down hard. As a Pakistani, I've never seen weather like this in my life. A very old local man says he remembers a flood in 1929 but that it was nothing compared to this. This is unique in my nation's history.

An hour and a half's drive gets us only to the village of Fatehpur where we're told the roads and bridges ahead have been destroyed. We have to leave the car behind and move ahead on foot. I arrange to hire eight labourers to help carry our cartons.

As we walk, I can't stop looking at the houses, hotels and shops around me. These are concrete buildings which collapsed as if they were made of paper. It's hard to believe that just water has caused all this destruction and misery.

Half an hour's walk gets us to a road where we stop and hire another van. This time, we get as far as Jarri village before another collapsed bridge forces us to start walking again.

This time, our walk is far more difficult since the track is muddy and slippery. We manage to reach the small town of Madain where, for the third and last time that day, we are able to find another vehicle. But we've only been on our way for two or three minutes before another collapsed bridge stops us in our tracks.

We're not alone on our travels. We stop and ask some men that we pass where they're from. Most have come from the remote parts of the Upper Swat and have walked for at least a day. They're heading for Fatehpur to collect food being handed out by the aid agencies. For most of these people, this will be the only food they will have had for days. They're hunched over and carrying sacks of wheat flour, oil, rice, pulses, sugar, salt and biscuits on their backs - enough to keep their families going for a week or more.

There are women too - collecting water from the river for their families. They know they shouldn't drink it. It will make their children ill. But they have no choice.
These people have nowhere to go. People from Swat are very poor - they can't afford to go somewhere else and rent a home. And they don't want to leave their homes or their livestock. The luckiest ones will have relatives they can go and stay with - but it's getting harder to find people not affected by the floods.
It starts to rain even harder which forces us to slow our walk. It's difficult to keep your footing in this kind of mud. Everyone is struggling but no-one complains.

There are frightening moments too. Because many bridges have been completely swept away, locals have done the best they can with whatever is to hand. We cross several bridges which are just pieces of wood held together with rope. They're pretty dangerous - I cross holding on tightly as the bridge shakes from side to side. What worries me most is my team - I have five people with me plus the labourers.

At last, after nearly four hours of hard walking, we reach Bahrain at 4pm. We're all tired and soaked but know it was worth it. We manage to distribute powder sachets to nearly 3,000 households. At 30 sachets per family, that will give them clean water for 15 days. We will go back again today (Sun) and as many times as we need to. We all need to work together to get help to wherever it's needed most."

* * *

08/18/2010

Blog by Thomas Schwarz, CARE media specialist in Pakistan. Originally published by http://www.CARE.org.

The Taliban helps flood victims and then publicly praises its own work. This is what I read in the news. In interviews, journalists ask if it is true, and I say yes. Of course they publicize their good works. Everybody who does good deeds for others publicizes it. But, is this the question we should be asking right now? Not for me.

This debate about the Taliban has nothing to with the reality we face here everyday across the country. The debate is a Western obsession, not one of the flood-affected people in need.

Frankly, I barely understand the connection between the topic and the biggest natural disaster of our time. We should be focusing our attention on how we can provide immediate relief efficiently and effectively to those in need.

I witnessed in Moltan just how CARE is supporting mobile health clinics so that primary health care is accessible to those who need it.

The temperature here is a humid 104 degrees, and flies are everywhere. A man shoos them away. Flood survivors queue patiently for their turn to registrater and receive medical assistance. The process is quick and efficient, and the people here are directly benefiting from this intervention because of generous donations to CARE.

Moltan lies to the south of Punjab Province, where new floods are predicted as monsoon rains continue.

CARE's warehouses here are all now empty and, as more donations come in, we are procuring more supplies to distribute to those in need. Since the floods began we have distributed tents, hygiene kits, mosquito nets and kitchen sets. It is not true that humanitarian assistance is not reaching those in need. It is - but simply not enough!

Along the main, four-lane road out of Moltan, we see tents, one after another like a string of pearls. Tents? That's an exaggeration. They are really just plastic sheets held up by wooden poles. The fronts and backs remain open, offering no privacy for those who seek shelter. But they at least provide some protection from the fierce sun.

70-year-old man sits alone, staring into space. Around him children sit likewise.

When we arrive, we are surrounded by people immediately. Everybody wants to say something. They all say the same thing, "We have no tents. Look!" They point to a village, less than 200 meters away. It is completely flooded - all we see are roofs. We know that these people will not be able to return to their village as long as the rains continue and the stagnant water refuses to recede.

We are relieved to hear that the villagers are receiving food. When we ask from whom, and they reply, "People from Moltan are coming every day to deliver food." The people from Molten are strangers, but the villagers know they can rely on them.

Today, as the holy fasting month of Ramadan has now started, the strangers arrive in the evening after sunset. Tomorrow, Pakistan celebrates its independence from the British empire. People help people in Pakistan. This is the true Pakistan I know and appreciate.

By the way, Zahid, the sick little boy I met in Charsadda, is back home and playing again! My colleague, Mujahid, just sent me an e-mail to let me know.

Another question often asked by journalists comes to mind: "Does the help reach people?" Yes, it does.

* * *

08/17/2010

Blog from Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada

DAY 5: Every day has been different here this week.  We started off visiting tent manufacturers and buying relief supplies in Lahore.  We then moved to the flood zone around Nowshera, and witnessed vast areas still under water, waterlogged homes, and spoke to displaced families still shocked by what happened to them.   The next day took us further north, into the mountainous Swat valley where the flood damage was more violent, destroying homes, roads, fields, and leaving nothing behind.  Our return to Islamabad yesterday was a bit surreal, unaffected by the floods, life seems to be going on as normal.

Yet, nothing is normal.  Everyone is thinking about people like Hadia, who walked an hour to get to the CARE supported mobile clinic.  I met her in Medain, where she had her three children (two girls one boy) with her, and all had diarrhea.  Even the doctor treating them was suffering from the ailment. It is critical that Hadia and her children are able to get treatment, because children quickly become dehydrated, and weak, susceptible to other infections, and death if not treated.

Generally, treatments are simple, oral rehydration solution, zinc, and sometimes antibiotics. But people need to be able to access the clinic.  Hadia (and the 50 other women the clinic had served so far that day) were lucky they could reach the clinic.  Many cannot, and we need to scale up our response to bring these services to more women.  Because women are key to their communities, their children key to the future.

* * *

08/16/2010

Blog from Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada

We left the flood zone earlier today, and are now in Islamabad. I already feel that I should be back there with those who have been so badly impacted. But in the reality of humanitarian response, we all have our jobs to do, and our local staff and partners don't actually need my help giving the next shipment of 2,600 tents to familieslike Ahmed, Faizla and their children, they don't need me underfoot when they are running our four medical clinics that are each serving 150 patients every day. What the flood victims and our staff need me to do is tell their stories, raise awareness and raise money. Our staff on the ground will ensure that aid is delivered to those who need it, they will ensure that our efforts are coordinated with local authorities and other agencies, and they will provide proof every day that the outside world is standing in solidarity with those so badly affected by these floods.

My biggest fear however is that the unfolding disaster is getting worse, and that my efforts at doing my job are inadequate. It is hard to believe that the floods and the stories I've been telling about those affected don't seem to be motivating donors the same way that the tsunami, or Haitian earthquake, did.

One of the first principles of humanitarian response is that assistance provided to survivors of a disaster must be equitable. To put that into perspective, Canadians donated $220 million dollars after the Haiti earthquake, addressing the relief, recovery and reconstruction needs of some three million Haitians. That is nearly $7 per Canadian, or over $70 per Haitian affected by the crisis (and this excludes money from CIDA). We are very far from that level of giving for Pakistan, and I don't know why. Our response is not equitable, and that troubles me a great deal.

My second fear is how I may have to answer the question "have you ever seen anything this bad before?" if we can't address my first fear above. On one level, I have never seen flooding this extensive, I have also never seem millions of people displaced over a two week period, and I have never seen 20% of a very large country affected by a single natural disaster. But on another level, I have seen worse. The cholera epidemic that struck the refugee camps in (then) Zaire after the genocide in Rwanda in 1994 were the result of the inability of the local authorities and the humanitarian community to provide clean water and adequate sanitation to the one million refugees who suddenly crossed the border. The death toll was horrific, with probably more than 50,000 people, mostly women and children, dying over a two week period as the epidemic ran unchecked through the refugee population. On the worst single day of that epidemic, we estimated between 5,000 to 10,000 people died.

I have seen the horrors of what an epidemic of water borne diseases can do to a displaced and vulnerable population. I'm going to do all I can to ensure that we prevent a catastrophic epidemic, so that when I am asked that question about the these Pakistan floods I don't have to say that "I have never seen anything this bad in my life".

So that is why I've left the flood zone - to do my job of raising awareness and raising funds to contribute to the relief effort. We can't undo the flooding, but we can still prevent the needless loss of life that will surely result if we fail to act now.

Kevin

* * *

Blog from Save the Children's Reporting Coordinator in Pakistan

TREACHEROUS TREK TO DELIVER AID

(August 14, 2010) The worst-affected areas of Swat are in the northern parts of the valley. For the past week, nine members of the Save the Children team have been distributing the food rations that have been delivered by helicopter by the World Food Programme. Myself and the senior programme manager decided that we should travel over to Kalam to assist the team and help document and monitor the food distribution. The only issue is that there are no helicopters available to transport aid workers, which meant if we wanted to get there, we would have to trek 50 kilometres to do so.

We set off at 0630 from Fateh Pur, a town 15 kilometers outside Saidu Sharif. From here the only road to Kalam had collapsed.

We reached the first town, Adyan, after crossing two hills. The entire shape of the city had changed - the floods created a river that went straight through the middle of town, completely destroying the main market. Mud and dust was everywhere, as were huge boulders that the flood had carried right into town. A lot of people from the town had already left and moved to the southern areas of Swat, but there were still some people there, protecting their homes and property. From Adyan we crossed a temporary bridge - two planks of wood - with the river 10 feet below us, flowing rapidly. When we had crossed the bridge, we saw that the road had collapsed and was 50 meters below where it used to be. So on one side of us was 20-30 meters of mountain face and on the other side was the river. We were forced to walk with the river water up to our knees, hanging on to the rock face. The water was ice cold.

We finally reached a city, Bahrain, which used to be a big tourist destination with lots of hotels, restaurants, and beautiful river side cafes. I was there five years ago on holiday with my family. The city is now unrecognisable. It is like something has taken a huge pile of rocks and mud and thrown in all over the city. The main bazaar is completely destroyed. Three story hotels have tumbled down and the main road through the town was covered in 5 feet of mud. Small shops and stalls are covered in mud and dust and rocks. Several of the main bridges that people used to commute from one side of the city to the other have been destroyed - some without any remnants at all. But what was most amazing was that the river had completely changed course and was now running 20-30 meters further west from where it was.

We walked along the old river bed out of the city and into the mountains. From here, cars took us along a small stretch of road - about 8 kilometers, to where the road ended. We were then forced to climb a couple of mountains on our right and walk through dense jungle with no sunlight. The only way to get through is via tight lanes and water canals used for irrigation. We walked through a number of mountainous villages and small farms. The majority of the people living here haven't moved. They are uphill from the river - but have been completely cut off from the rest of the world. Their livelihoods have been totally disrupted - there is no way they can sell their crops at the market.

Moving on, we walked for 6 kilometers in the mountains before we reached Toorwal, where for three hours we had small stretches of road interrupted by mountain - the road had been washed away by the flood water.

We came across a number of villages that had once been next to the river and had been completely destroyed. We met lots of people coming and going - some people, like us, travelling north with food rations. We met children who had 20 kilos of food on their backs for their families. We also met villagers who'd had homes destroyed, heading south in search of help. To reach Mankyal, we had to cross a 20-meter gap between the road and mountain. The bridge was a small tree trunk that the villagers had placed there to get over the river. This was very precarious and had a torrent of raging water running just under it. We had to crawl along. There was a line of people queuing up to get across.

We thought we were nearly there but found the road was destroyed again. We had to climb another two mountains, one of which was over 8,000 feet high, on a very narrow and steep track. We met locals also going to Kalam who said there were cars going the last few kilometers. We were lucky because they had just started operating. We crossed a few more villages, farmland and jungle. Everyone we met was asking if we were bringing aid with us. We met two young brothers, aged just 5 and 9, who told us about their experience. They had lost everything - their clothes, books, even their precious football -- so I gave one of my shirts to them.

We then climbed down to where the road took us to Kalam. We had been walking for almost 12 hours - and we didn't want to miss the jeeps driving to Kalam - which was another 17 kilometers. I couldn't feel my feet, my back hurt and I had no more strength. We were so thankful when we saw the Jeeps parked a few kilometers further down. By the time we got there, we realised they were actually waiting for the "two crazy outsiders" who were risking their lives coming here to help. It was nearing dusk and it had just starting to rain. Thankfully it hadn't rained during our walk as there was always the fear of landslides and slipping.

The Jeep ride was about another hour - we had to go over more canals and broken roads - only just accessible by 4x4. Five years ago when I came to this area, there were hotels and restaurants, and people from all over Pakistan were here on holiday. I can remember so vividly all the lights and noise everywhere. When we arrived, it was as if it was a ghost town, completely pitch black. I couldn't believe it was Kalam.

We met the team at 8.30 pm - so glad we had got here.

In Kalam, 90% of the main market, which provides a livelihood for so many people, was completely destroyed. It was unrecognisable. It looked like it might have 100 years ago: no cars - they had all washed away -- no clean water supply, which was previously run by an electric pumping station, now destroyed. The only means of getting across the river is by climbing into a cage that is then hoisted across the water using a pulley/rope system, one person at a time.

There is very little food here. The only way to get food in is by helicopter, and the major problem is that helicopters can't come in when it's raining. It's monsoon season so rain is almost continuous. Because of the bad weather, they couldn't fly in today. We had planned for food distribution on a daily basis, but we can't do anything if it rains. So far we have managed about two to three food distributions a week - far less than we had hoped. Save the Children is the only humanitarian organisation working out here.

 

Blog from Oxfam Program Officer, Madiha Shafi.

An emotional Journey

Shikarpur district in Sindh province of Pakistan was suddenly hit by flood. People are still shocked and helpless. According to official figure around 300,000 people are displaced in this district. Oxfam is there to assess situation and start rapid response very soon. Madiha Shafi, Oxfam's Program officer wrote this very emotional piece about her visit to Shikarpur.

When I reached Shikarpur, I saw people sitting on the roadside with blank faces while holding into last belongings. They seemed traumatized with unexpected flood. I slowly drove past them and entered into a relief camp located near by the city.

Here I became numb as I saw hungry people and children who lost everything in flood were waiting for food.Suddenly, a woman touched my feet and said in Sindhi "please give me something we have lost every thing. I have not eaten any thing in past 2 days". At that moment I felt someone was cutting my heart with sharp knife. I tried to stop her and stepped back. I was speechless and had no words to console her.

I moved ahead with a heavy heart. At this point I witnessed a lot of movement among people living in this relief camp. It is because a truckload of cooked rice arrived here and received attraction of people. Many children were running with bare foot to tell their parents that food has arrived. However, the amount of food given to each family is really far from sufficient. Each family was given a plate full of rice. In this area where at least six person forms a family this amount of food is next to nothing.

I realized why hunger is a harsh reality. We completed our assessment here and came outside of the camp. The weather outside was really hard for everyone to bear due to burning temperature. However, to me everything was burning here including frustrated eyes of the people, tears which are rolling down from the eyes of the kids and of course my aching heart.

We visited another camp. About 2000 people are living in this camp where as according to the authority a possibility of 2000 more people are likely to arrive in next one or two days from nearby flood hit zones. Story here is the same- grim and daunting. This is the time to help these unfortunate people.

While I am writing my feelings about Shikarpur I still am thinking about the woman who touched my feet. I am once again in agony and I am not able to see my laptop screen because of tears in my eyes which is making every thing hazy.

 

08/15/2010

Blog from Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada

DAY 3: At the moment, in the upper Swat valley, the river is actually quite beautiful, a rough and rugged mountain river. Just a few days ago though it was a monster, and today we saw the destruction it caused in the towns and villages along its upper reaches.

Whole villages, riverside roads, bridges, power stations and the entire center of own town, are actually gone. Not flooded, or damaged, but totally gone. It wasn't easy to get in to see this damage either, since the roads were cut, we drove as far as we could, then grabbed our raingear and some water and started walking. After 20 minutes we found another stretch of road, so hired a driver to take us further. He could only go so far as the road was cut again further on, so we got out and walked again. We repeated this hopscotch process of walking then using stranded cars a few more times over the next couple of hours before we reached our destination of Maydan. It is in this town that one of the CARE supported medical clinics was operating.

It is also where some of the most extensive damage is found. The entire west side of the main street fell into the river and was washed away. A new channel was cut down another street, taking out the entire roadway and several storefronts. It also completely destroyed the office of our local partner, IDEA.

I didn't hear about any injuries during the flooding, but in my conversations with the male and female doctors in the clinic, they mentioned that many of the patients they saw today were traumatized by the floods. I can't imagine what it must have been like on that day.

The doctors also mentioned that diarrhea was an increasing problem, with many cases. An outbreak of diarrhea is my biggest fear, as this can be very dangerous, especially for children.

We are arranging to bring in extra supplies for the clinic to ensure they are well equipped to head off a possible outbreak. And until the road is fixed, we'll be hopscotching them in.

Please support CARE's ongoing work today.

* * *

Blog from Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada

Helicopters were flying over the Swat valley today, as the UN secretary general Ban Ki-Moon visited flood affected areas to see the devastation first hand.

His message was consistent with what the Humanitarian Coalition members have been saying for days: the people of Pakistan need our help, so please give what you can.

The floods have passed through the Swat valley, leaving many homeless and at risk, but the flooding hasn't yet peaked further south, meaning more devastation is to come. CARE, Oxfam and Save are active, with our staff and partners, along the entire river system, in Swat, Punjab and Sindh.

Humanitarian Coalition Launches Pakistan appeal for Aid

10/08/2010

Growing disaster in Pakistan prompts new Humanitarian Coalition appeal

August 10, 2010 – As both the flood waters and death toll continue to rise in Pakistan, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION is launching a new joint appeal to Canadians to support emergency relief efforts. Individually the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION – CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada – have been responding on the ground since the emergency began. However the growing magnitude of the disaster – an estimated 1600 dead and over fourteen million affected – is creating a new urgency that demands joint action. The last time the HUMANITARIAN COALITION launched a joint appeal was for the Haiti earthquake.

“Our organizations were each already on the ground and working in Pakistan when the floods hit. However there are times where the need is so great that we must come together under the banner of the Humanitarian Coalition to save more lives. Haiti was one such case. What is happening in Pakistan now is another,” said Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada.

CARE mobile health clinics that have been aiding survivors of last year’s conflict in the Swat Valley are now also serving Pakistanis affected by the flood. Over 30 CARE trucks loaded with shelter and non-food relief supplies have already arrived in the region.

Given the destruction and extensive damage to the existing water supply and sanitation infrastructures, Oxfam, in collaboration with local partners, will rehabilitate damaged drinking water systems, provide water through water trucking and providing fuel and pipes for water schemes. Oxfam will also disinfect water supply/source systems, establish water quality monitoring mechanisms and provide households with water treatment options such as water purification tablets, and related supplies including water tanks, jerry cans and buckets. The agency expects to reach 400,000 people.

Save the Children is providing medical care and distributing materials for emergency shelter, hygiene kits, and food parcels to help the 6 million children and their families who have been left homeless and vulnerable to life threatening diseases in the wake of the worst flooding to hit Pakistan in over a century.  

The people affected by the flooding are still reeling from the fighting that broke out last year between government forces and insurgent militias. More than 500,000 Pakistanis were forced to flee their homes and villages because of the violence.

“These people were already very vulnerable, especially the children. Communities just weren’t prepared for another hit like this. They need our support more than ever. This includes being ready and able with the resources to help rebuild food security and livelihoods in the affected areas,” said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. By combining under one banner, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION makes it easy for Canadians to donate in an emergency. With one joint fundraising apparatus, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reduces fundraising costs, increasing the impact of Canadian donations where it is needed.

Canadians can support the Pakistan relief effort by donating at www.together.ca.

- 30 –

For more information about the crisis, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION or to arrange for an interview, contact one of the member agencies at the following details:

Kieran Green, CARE Canada
(613) 799-7562


Karen Palmer, Oxfam Canada
(613) 240-3047


Lynn Dolen, Oxfam-Québec
(514) 513-0024


Denise Koulis, Save the Children Canada
(647) 291-1683

Haiti: Six months later

12/07/2010

Efforts have shifted to the rebuilding phase of Haiti earthquake response.

Ottawa (12 July, 2010) - Six months after the disastrous earthquake in Haiti, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and its members have shifted their focus from emergency relief to the longer-term work of supporting Haitian communities as they rebuild their country. While life in Haiti is beginning to return to some semblance of normality, there is still a great deal of work to be done.

Relief workers with CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada shifted their efforts from emergency relief to fostering recovery and reconstruction. A long road lays ahead for the people of Haiti and the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION will remain in the country for years to come, helping every step of the way.

Over the past six months, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have effectively contributed to rebuilding Haiti alongside the survivors of the earthquake. The members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have reached hundreds of thousands of Haitians with essential and urgently needed assistance.

Here are just a few examples and highlights of the many different activities undertaken so far:

• CARE has created 20 women's centres in Carrefour and Leogane to help prevent gender-based violence and raise awareness about HIV/AIDS.

• Save the Children has registered 1,740 children in family tracking and reunification programs. To date, 567 children have been reunited with their family.

• 134,000 people are benefitting from Oxfam's cash-for-work programs.

• Save the Children has reached more than 100,000 people with health and nutritional programs.

• 1,575 families have received spinach and okra seeds from CARE to improve their access to fresh food.

• Oxfam hygiene kits are benefitting 120,000 people. For more information on what the members are doing to help the people of Haiti, please contact the member organisations directly using the details in the right-hand column.

For more information on what the members are doing to help the people of Haiti, please contact the member organizations directly using the details in the right-hand column. Or, to read more about the efforts of these organizations in Haiti, read:

Save the Children's, Serving Haiti's Children Now, Rebuilding For Their Future

Oxfam Canada's six-month update on Haiti

Oxfam Quebec's six-month report on Haiti (in French)

CARE's Haiti earthquake appeal

 

Below are a few stories and pictures from Haiti:

**********************

CARE

Emilienne Laguerre, 39 is 7 months pregnant and is getting ready to move into a new temporary shelter provided by CARE's shelter program in Carrefour, July 05, 2010.  (Natasha Fillion/CARE)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oxfam
 
Elsie Delva is from Carrefour Feuilles, a poor neighborhood of Port-au-Prince. She lost everything in the earthquake. As one of the most vulnerable members of her community, she was selected as a beneficiary of one of the first community canteens that Oxfam opened in March.
Since then Oxfam has also supported her with grants of 50 and 100 US dollars, so she could recapitalize her business and start earning a living again.
 
"After the earthquake things were very difficult. Then Oxfam started the canteens, and we were able to eat every day for two months. That helped. And since then, Oxfam also gave me money. With that money, I was able to repay some debt that I had so that I could feed the children (both of them are orphans), and then I bought some stock and opened this stall. "In the future, I hope to be able to expand my business, that would make it much easier to live, and then I would be able to send the children to school."

 

Save the Children

The mother of 2-week-old twins Richardson and Rejeffson was still recovering from a Caesarian section, so she could not bring her newborns to the Save the Children clinic for their check-up. Instead, she enlisted the help of her cousins, who brought the newborns to the Gaston Margron camp where Save the Children operates its mobile clinic. The mobile clinic serves the camp population of 6,000, but also reaches out to others in the community and will see any patient who comes to the clinic. At Gaston Margron, patients have a consultation with a doctor and nurse who is trained in nutritional supports. They are then assessed and prescribed medication which is available free of charge at the clinic. Since the earthquake hit Haiti on January 12, Save the Children has been able to reach more than 100,000 people with health and nutrition programs.

West Africa Food Crisis

24/06/2010

Almost 10 million people across Africa's Sahel region are facing a food crisis.

Irregular rains in 2009 have led to a severe lack of pasture, water and a poor harvest. The worst affected country is Niger where 8 million people are at risk. Some 2 million people are threatened in Chad and a substantial number of people are expected to be affected in Mali in the coming months. Parts of Nigeria and Burkina Faso are also at risk.

In Niger, the harvest has fallen by 26% as compared with the previous year, and some areas, especially the Diffa in the east of country and Tillabéry to the west, have had no harvest at all. In Chad, harvests have fallen by 34%. The areas of Hadjer Lamis, Batha, Kanem, Guera regions and eastern Chad are expected to be hit hard, especially from June 2010. Overall, the harvest in the Sahel has decreased by 9% with great disparities between East and West Sahel.

HUMANITARIAN COALITION members are already responding to the crisis and have launched emergency appeals to bring essential help to the people affected by the drought.

To learn more about what the member agencies are doing in response to the crisis, please visit their websites by clicking on the links below:

• CARE Canada's response
• Oxfam Canada's response
• Save the Children's response
• Oxfam Quebec's response (en francais)

 

China Earthquake: Statement

15/04/2010

Ottawa, ON (April 15, 2010) HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, are all carefully monitoring the situation in China following the recent earthquake in Qinghai province and preparing appropriate humanitarian relief activities.  Latest reports at the time of this statement are that this earthquake has killed over 600 people and over 9,000 others have been injured.

Member agencies are carrying out assessments across the region and will be revising their response plans as the situation evolves. In the next few days the information from these assessments will determine the types of programs and scale of funding support that will be required to assist those affected by this crisis.

For more information, please contact the member agencies at the coordinates in the right hand column.

Chile Earthquake: Update

12/04/2010

Ottawa, ON (April 12, 2010) Following the massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake that struck on February 27, 2010, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION continue to assist in the relief efforts in Chile.  The earthquake and more than 200 aftershocks that followed have left 94,000 people without shelter and tens of thousands more without access to clean drinking water.

CARE, Oxfam and Save the Children sent assessment teams there immediately, and have since focused their energies and resources for supplying water, food, hygiene items, tents, tarps, setting up systems of waste disposal and helping to provide shelter and security for children.

HUMANITARIAN COALITION members are supporting the capacity of communities to be prepared for future emergencies, and minimize potential damage.

To learn more about what the member agencies are doing in response to the earthquake, please visit their websites by clicking on the links below:

• CARE Canada
• Oxfam Canada
• Oxfam-Québec
• Save the Children Canada

 

Chile Earthquakes: Statement (Feb. 27)

27/02/2010

Ottawa, ON (February 27, 2010) HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, are all carefully monitoring the situation in Chile following the recent earthquakes and preparing appropriate humanitarian relief activities.

In this complex and rapidly evolving crisis, HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are determining how they can best provide assistance, including urgently needed food, water and medical supplies. Though total estimates vary, many thousands of Chileans are known to be directly affected by the damage caused following the recent earthquakes.

Member agencies are carrying out assessments across the region and will be revising their response plans as the situation evolves. In the next few days the information from these assessments will determine the types of programs and scale of funding support that will be required to assist those affected by this crisis.

For more information, please contact the member agencies at the coordinates in the right hand column.

 

Canadians want more cooperation among aid groups

25/02/2010

HUMANITARIAN COALITION thanks Canadians for generosity

OTTAWA, February 25 - The HUMANITARIAN COALITION is thanking Canadians for their incredible generosity and is announcing the results of its joint fundraising appeal for the Haiti relief effort. As the joint appeal winds down, a recent poll shows Canadians strongly support the idea of aid groups working together for future emergencies.

“On behalf of all four members of the Humanitarian Coalition, I want to sincerely thank all Canadians for  the extraordinary generosity they have showed the people of Haiti in their time of need,” said Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada. “With your support our organizations will be working in Haiti for as long as it takes to help Haitians rebuild their country and their lives.”

Since January 12, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has jointly raised approximately $13 million for the work the four agencies are doing in Haiti, including distributing food, water, shelter, hygiene kits, special kits for pregnant women and mothers with small children, providing health services, combating sexual violence, and creating safe environments for children.  Together the four organizations have over 1000 workers on the ground in Haiti. The Haiti appeal has been the largest effort for the HUMANITARIAN COALITION since it was formed following the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

During the Haiti appeal, Canadians responded enthusiastically to the idea of aid groups working cooperatively. A new poll has found that 81.7 per cent of Canadians believe Canadian aid groups should work together for future major global emergencies. In addition, 36.4 per cent said they would be more likely to give to a coalition of aid groups.

"Throughout the Haiti crisis Canadians have come to know the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, and the response has been very positive," said Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada. "They clearly like the idea of aid groups working together rather than competing, and they want to see more of it in the future. So we are inviting other Canadian humanitarian groups that have a strong track record in humanitarian response and programming to become members."

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION was established as a result of lessons learned from the response to the 2004 tsunami. The four organizations agreed that by working together and doing the right thing by setting aside competition for donor dollars it would be easier for Canadians to donate to the relief effort.  They took this approach to cut costs, allowing a greater percentage of donations to reach those in need, and allowing the money to be allocated in the most effective way to the organizations with the greatest capacity to deliver aid on the ground.

"We're all in this to save lives and help vulnerable communities recover, rebuild and be more resilient in the future. There is no reason to compete," said Nicolas Moyer, Coordinator of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION. "It all comes down to this: together we are stronger, together we can do more, together we can save even more lives."%

Last Opportunity to have Donations Matched

10/02/2010

(OTTAWA – February 10, 2010) - The HUMANITARIAN COALITION's members are appealing to Canadians to continue their generosity as the deadline for the Canadian Government's match to donations comes this Friday, February 12.

Four weeks on from the deadly earthquake, survivors have had to face unprecedented challenges.  Working together in Canada and in Haiti, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada have been distributing aid and providing programs for Haitians since the earthquake struck.  While food, water, emergency healthcare and child protection programs have reached hundreds of thousands, the needs remain great and will continue this way for years to come.  This match on donations, over on Friday, is a crucial opportunity to improve conditions for families in Haiti.

Canadians have demonstrated extraordinary generosity despite difficult economic times; the HUMANITARIAN COALITION is asking for Canadians to look to the long term and invest in Haiti's future today. 

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, log onto humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

-30-

For more information:
Elysia Nisan
  
(w) 416-218-1882
(c) 647-273-7134

HAITI UPDATE (02.02.10)

02/02/2010

OTTAWA (Feb. 2, 2010) - The HUMANITARIAN COALITION's members continue to provide support to the hundreds of thousands of people still enduring severe conditions in post-earthquake Haiti.  Three weeks since the earthquake struck, aid is reaching those in need, while protection and equal distribution of supplies continue to be priorities for the agencies.

All of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are undertaking assessments of regions not directly affected by the earthquake, which have become home to many who fled Port-au-Prince, including Gros-Marne and Gonaives in Haiti and the border region of the Dominican Republic.

Over the past several days the aid activities of the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have included:

• Distribution of 25 and 50 kg bags of rice to 1,700 displaced people a day in the Delmas district of Port-au-Prince.

• Water and sanitation programs being increased to reach some of the smaller sites in Port-au-Prince where people have taken refuge, with plans for work to begin next week at three sites housing 5,000 people. 

• Distribution of plastic sheeting to 4,000 families (20,000 people) and 1,000 tents and house repair kits for people whose homes are not beyond repair.  

• 2,857 medical consultations in the past week, including 660 children under 5 years of age through mobile clinics; 70 health workers were trained in Leogane and another mobile clinic was established in Jacmel. 

• 17 Child-Friendly Spaces established in Jacmel and Port-au-Prince, benefitting more than 10,000 children over the past 10 days.  Child Protection programs will soon be starting in Leogane as well. 

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Quebec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, visit humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

HAITI UPDATE (27.01.10)

27/01/2010

OTTAWA – January 27, 2010 – The HUMANITARIAN COALITION’s more than 600 aid personnel continue to make progress on the ground. The HUMANITARIAN COALITION is working to improve living conditions for the hundreds of thousands of displaced Haitians by distributing water, food rations, construction of latrines and other relief services.

Today’s updates from the HUMANITARIAN COALITION include:

SHELTER
•    20 latrines built and 8 bathing areas completed (Save the Children)
•    Distribution of plastic shelter and hygiene kits for 30,000 people continues (Oxfam)
•    13 Child Friendly Spaces are up and running in Port-au-Prince and Jacmel, providing activities for over 6000 children over the past 8 days (Save the Children)
•    Cash-for-work scheme paying people to clean up camp began Sunday at Petionville Club golf course, where 50,000 people are camped out. It will be expanded to other sites all week. (Oxfam)
•    On January 23 CARE distributed 448 hygiene kits and 448 lots of five blankets each in Place SteThérèse, Petionville, covering a total of 2,133 beneficiaries.
•    On January 23 CARE distributed 360 mattresses (1 per family) in Leogane.

WATER
•    Oxfam is providing regular access to clean drinking water 85,000 for beneficiaries. Will soon expand to over 110,000. 
•    Five sites with water bladders, serving 65,000 total are up and running. Latrines and washing areas completed at two sites serving 55,000 people. Work continues at three additional sites, which will serve 20,000. New work to begin soon at three new sites, home to 16,000 people. (Oxfam)
•    Work to begin on a treatment water program in the town of Petit Goive and on water provision at Martissant. (Oxfam)
•    CARE is distributing clean drinking water through five bladders installed in Léogane and Pétionville, providing potable water to some 7,600 beneficiaries on daily basis.
•    Installation of latrines started in St Therese

HEALTH
•    10,000 family kits will be assembled at brewery warehouse and distributed in lots of 500. These kits contain feminine hygiene products, kitchen utensils, pots, etc. (Oxfam)
•    297 additional patients were treated today in Jacmel, and another temporary health clinic began treating patients (Save the Children)

NON-FOOD ITEMS
•    Distribution in Leogane for 600 families was undertaken on Jan. 26, included blankets and plastic sheeting for families. (Save the Children)
•    Distribution also planned for 500 families in Theatre National and Delmas 53 Jan. 26 (Port-au-Prince). (Save the Children)
•    CARE has received a shipment of clean delivery kits and condoms to integrate into non-food item kits for distribution

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, visit humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

-30-

For more information:
Kieran Green, CARE Canada

Tel: (613) 228-5678, Cell: (613) 799-7562

NEW PHOTOS, VIDEO AND BLOG POSTINGS FROM WORKERS IN HAITI
AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

Montreal Conference: Media Availability

25/01/2010

JANUARY 25, 2010 - OTTAWA – The HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada will have representatives at the Montréal Haiti reconstruction conference available for comment.

Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada and Michel Verret, Interim Executive Director of Oxfam-Quebec, will be among the speakers at the conference and will be available for media interviews. Robert Fox, executive director of Oxfam Canada and David Morley, president and CEO of Save the Children Canada, will also be available for media interviews.

TO BOOK AN INTERVIEW, ALL MEDIA ARE INVITED TO CONTACT:

CARE Canada
Andrea Lanthier-Seymour: Media Relations
Cell: 613.983.1222
Oxfam Canada
Karen Palmer: Media Officer
Cell: 613.240.3047
Oxfam-Québec
Justine Lesage: Media Relations
Cell: 514.513.0013
Save the Children Canada
Elysia Nisan: Media Coordinator
Tel: 416.221.5501 Ext. 305
Cell: 647.273.7134

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, log onto humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3
-30-

Relief Telethon Pulls in over $9.4 million

23/01/2010

“CANADA FOR HAITI” RELIEF TELETHON PULLS IN $9.4 MILLION.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION would like to thank the generosity of the thousands of Canadians who contributed during yesterday’s “Canada for Haiti” telethon. Canadians truly answered the call to help and the HUMANITARIAN COALITION recognizes this solidarity.

Look at what we can accomplish when we work together!

Thank you Canada. 

HAITI UPDATE (22.01.10)

22/01/2010

HAITI UPDATE: HUMANITARIAN COALITION PROVIDES LATEST RELIEF UPDATE

TODAY’S PHOTOS, NEW B-ROLL AND NEW BLOG POSTINGS FROM WORKERS  AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

OTTAWA – January 22, 2010 – The HUMANITARIAN COALITION’s more than 600 aid personnel continue to make progress on the ground. The HUMANITARIAN COALITION is working to improve living conditions for the hundreds of thousands of displaced Haitians by distributing water, food rations, construction of latrines and other relief services.

 

Today’s updates from the HUMANITARIAN COALITION include:
·       High energy biscuits were distributed to 1500 people, in Jeremie.

·       Water distributed to 2600 people, from two distribution bladders in Petionville.

·       Water distribution has reached 2400 and 3000 affected, in Delma 81 A and B, and Delma 62. A total of 12000 gallons were distributed.

·       Preparing to install latrines at two sites: Grace Medicale, a temporary camp with 15,000 residents, and Lamartine 54, an internally displaced persons camp of 10,000 people.

·       Beginning discussions around cash-for-work programs to clear rubbish, rubble and get markets up and running again.

·       Conducted training for 50 social workers and animators on psychosocial and Child-Friendly Space activities and child protection policies.

·       24 staff were trained as either Water/Sanitation technicians or Hygiene promoters. They will begin constructing latrines and water points in sites around Port au Prince tomorrow  as well as promoting good hygiene practices

·       Mobile clinic in Leogane continued seeing patients, roughly 100.

·       3 Child-Friendly Spaces scheduled to be open in Jacmel.

·       Trained up team of 24 water, sanitation and hygiene staff, including 14 water/sanitation technicians and 10 hygiene Promoters. Team will go to 15 assessed makeshift settlements tomorrow in Port au Prince and begin latrine construction, water point construction, and hygiene promotion.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, visit humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

-30-

For more information:

Patrick Jacob



Tel: (613) 241-3512 x 230, Cell: (613) 983-3512

TODAY’S PHOTOS, NEW B-ROLL AND NEW BLOG POSTINGS FROM WORKERS  AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

 

“CANADA FOR HAITI” TELETHON INITIATIVE

21/01/2010

THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION APPLAUDS THE “CANADA FOR HAITI” TELETHON INITIATIVE

OTTAWA – January 21, 2010 – The HUMANITARIAN COALITION applauds the “Canada for Haiti” telethon that will air on CBC, CTV and Global this Friday at 7 p.m. The HUMANITARIAN COALITION’s member agencies, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada will all be among the beneficiaries of the funds raised.

TODAY’S PHOTOS AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

NEW B-ROLL AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

NEW BLOG POSTINGS FROM WORKERS IN HAITI AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

“The HUMANITARIAN COALITION is grateful to the broadcast media, Canadian celebrities and the many Canadian volunteers who have graciously put together a special televised event that will pay homage to the Haitian people’s struggle, determination and courage and will raise funds to help them in this time of need.” said Nicolas Moyer, coordinator of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION.

“Through communication and teamwork, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have taken the guesswork out of giving. By working together, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has simplified the process for Canadians to give to Haiti, while ensuring that their donations are going where they are needed most,” said Moyer.  “Friday’s national telethon will be a tremendous boost to our efforts and will show Canadians how their donations can help Haitians immediately on the ground.”

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, visit humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

-30-

For more information:

Patrick Jacob



Tel: (613) 241-3512 x 230, Cell: (613) 983-3512

TODAY’S PHOTOS AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

NEW B-ROLL AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

NEW BLOG POSTINGS FROM WORKERS IN HAITI AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

HAITI UPDATE (21.01.10)

21/01/2010

OTTAWA – January 21, 2010 – Despite yesterday’s powerful aftershock, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION continue to make progress on the ground. Aid operations are taking place on an ongoing basis and reaching thousands of Haitians.

 Today’s updates from the HUMANITARIAN COALITION include:

·       16.5 tons of drugs and medical supplies were provided to health technicians in Leogane and to the general hospital in Port-au-Prince.

·       40 tonnes of aid materials delivered; another 50 tonnes expected on Friday

·       Emergency Response team members were issued local cell phones

·       10,000 litres of water distributed to 10,000 Haitians in Port-au-Prince

·       147 children were registered at a Child Friendly space in Carrefour Tefour.

·       1000 hygiene kits from CIDA, 77 toy kits, and large quantities of bottled water were received yesterday.

·       1200 families received hygiene kits in Leoganes (contents of a hygiene kit: Toothbrush (2); toothpaste (2), soap (2), washing soap (1 box), shampoo (1), comb (2), detergent (1 box 2.5kg), towels (2), safety pins (12), laundry line (1), sanitary napkins (2 packs of 20), toilet paper (4 rolls)

·       Water was distributed to hospital in Carrefour and to 3,000 people in Leoganes

·       Two bladders of 5000 litres each were installed in Leoganes, filled with drinking water for 3,300 persons (3l of water to use for drinking). Bladders will be filled daily.

·       3 additional bladders are prepositioned in Leoganes, planned to be installed today and filled with water by trucks.

·       Additional water and sanitation equipment, chlorine for drinking water treatment, buckets, plastic sheeting and body bags have been received.

·        500 families received collapsible jerry cans (10 litres)

·        500 families were handed mattresses and blankets

·        In Place St Pierre, a waste disposal program has been set up – helping remove garbage and educate the population about waste disposal.

 

“The coordinated efforts of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children demonstrates the synergy and cooperation between the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION,” said Nicolas Moyer, Coordinator of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION. “Yet, we continue to rely on the generosity of Canadians to maintain and expand our levels of aid relief.”
The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, visit humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

-30-

For more information:

Patrick Jacob



Tel: (613) 241-3512 x 230 , Cell: (613) 983-3512

 

TODAY’S PHOTOS AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

NEW B-ROLL AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

NEW BLOG POSTINGS FROM WORKERS IN HAITI AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

MAGNITUDE 6.1 AFTERSHOCK

20/01/2010

HAITI UPDATE: MAGNITUDE 6.1 AFTERSHOCK RATTLES HAITIANS, BUT HUMANITARIAN COALITION’S OPERATIONS CONTINUE

OTTAWA – JANUARY20, 2010 – A powerful aftershock rocked Haiti this morning, reducing more buildings to rubble. The members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION reported that their relief operations are continuing while aid workers on the ground prepare for increased numbers seeking help as emotionally distraught Haitians regroup for the upcoming night.

“There was a real rumble, and then the earth moved. It wasn’t that long, but I can’t tell. I was running,” said Bodgan Dumitru, a Canadian on the CARE emergency team in Haiti. “We are next to a camp where displaced people are living, and when the quake hit a big scream came out of the camp. They’ve lost everything, all their houses, and they are terrified.”

"We are working alongside our partners to stave off a second wave of disaster," said Oxfam Canada Executive Director, Robert Fox. "Despite the aftershocks, and the continuing challenges, we need to ensure everyone has access to clean, safe water to avert the risk of disease."
 
"Our teams were shaken by the morning aftershock that had repercussions all the way to Port-au-Prince. Everyone is fine, but the anxiety level was high this morning. I also learned that some of our buildings were affected, but it will not impact our efforts with the Haitian people. To this end, our operations will continue. For example, distribution of water supply to 12 000 people began at 11 am this morning,” said Jean-Pierre Chicoine, special Envoy of Oxfam-Québec in the field.
 
“Children and families are still sleeping in the open, among the rubble. They are very vulnerable – this aftershock would have terrified them. We are working flat out to assist them, bringing in supplies and rolling them out to the people who need them as fast as we can,” said Annie Foster, Save the Children’s team leader in Port-au-Prince.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, visit humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3
-30-
For more information:
Patrick Jacob 

Tel: (613) 241-3512 x 230 , Cell: (613) 983-3512

TODAY’S PHOTOS AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca
NEW B-ROLL AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca
NEW BLOG POSTINGS FROM WORKERS IN HAITI AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

GOVERNMENT GRANTS TO OUR MEMBERS (20.01.10)

20/01/2010

OTTAWA – JANUARY20, 2010 – Recognizing the tremendous efforts of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION on the ground in Haiti, the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the Government of Québec will contribute $5.6 million dollars to coalition members.

CARE Canada will receive:

·       $1.5 million dollars from CIDA

Oxfam-Québec – whose efforts are also supported by Oxfam Canada – will receive:

·       $1.0 million dollars from the Government of Québec

·       $1.0 million dollars from CIDA

Save the Children will receive:

·       $2.1 million dollars from CIDA

“This funding from CIDA and the Government of Québec will enable Oxfam-Québec and other HUMANITARIAN COALITION members to immediately increase, among another things, water distribution, safe shelter for women and children and reach even more Haitians,” said Michel Verret, Interim Director of Oxfam-Québec. “The HUMANITATRIAN COALITION is grateful for this contribution and is confident that it will be part of a longer term relief and reconstruction program.”

“Child protection is our priority in the wake of this terrible disaster that has left thousands of children vulnerable,” said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada.  “The Canadian Government has recognized this critical need and supported Save the Children as we take the lead in coordinating efforts for education and child protection in Haiti.”

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, visit humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

-30-

For more information:

Patrick Jacob



Tel: (613) 241-3512 x 230 , Cell: (613) 983-3512

TODAY’S PHOTOS AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

NEW B-ROLL AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

HAITI UPDATE (19.01.10) 2

19/01/2010

HUMANITARIAN COALITION RELEASES WEEK ONE UPDATE ON HAITI RELIEF EFFORTS

OTTAWA – JANUARY 19, 2010 – One week after a devastating earthquake shattered Haiti, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION’s member agencies released an update of the funds raised and the rescue and relief work done to date by their aid workers and issued an appeal for the continued generosity of Canadians.

“Canadians have answered the call for rescue in an extraordinary way, enabling the HUMANITARIAN COALITION to deliver emergency relief to thousands of needy Haitians,”, added said Nicolas Moyer, Coordinator of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION. “As the immediacy of emergency rescue shifts to the next stage of relief – food, shelter, more stable water supplies, medical care and care and schooling for children, the continued generosity of Canadians will assist the HUMANITARIAN COALITION to help Haitians rebuild their lives and their country.”

“There is desperate need in Haiti, and we’re all desperate to meet that need as quickly as possible. But we have to make sure we do it right,” said Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada, member of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION. “You can’t simply throw food out the window of a truck and spark a riot. Giving medical aid requires doctors, and delivering relief supplies requires trained professionals. Agencies like CARE and Oxfam and Save the Children have decades of experience delivering aid in emergencies.”

"As our staff on the ground scramble to ensure people's most immediate needs are met, we're already thinking about how we can help survivors rebuild," said Oxfam Canada Executive Director, Robert Fox and member of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION. "Unless we listen to the voices of Haitians, there is little prospect for long-term success."

WEEK ONE: THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION BY THE NUMBERS:

·       More than 600 aid workers on the ground

·       $3.5 million dollars raised towards its $5 million dollar objective

·     Distribution of water purification tablets to Haitians, with a focus on pregnant women, new mothers and children, with a goal of reaching 75,000 people.

·     4 water bladders, containing 5,000 litres deployed

·     Distribution of 2200 Hygiene Kits and 1500 jerry cans

·       Water distribution at 19 sites and 10,000 litres of water to 10,000 displaced Haitians located on a former golf course in Delmas and to a hospital in Carrefour.

·       Small tool distribution

·       Handing out of 40 Household kits to families at Hôpital Espoir in Port-au-Prince

·       Deployment of Food and water for 2000 to a local hospital. Food included items such as tinned fish, crackers, rice, beans, powdered milk, tomato sauce, bottled water, and cooking oil.

·       Allocation of IV solutions and other medicines to 14 hospitals and clinics.

·       Distribution of hygiene kits to help stop the spread of disease that is common immediately after a disaster.

“The current urgency of the situation has generated an enormous amount of effort on the part of local partners, ONGs, as well as all of the actors already present in Haiti. However, we cannot neglect the importance of the long-term needs with regard to reconstruction and development. I would also like to draw attention to the food emergency that Haiti has been experiencing for a number of years, which only stands to worsen if radical measures are not taken,” emphasizes Michel Verret, Acting General Director of Oxfam-Québec.

“In a time of such turmoil, many Haitians are showing great dignity,” said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada.  “While the circumstances remain desperate for many, we are seeing entire communities of people coming together and handling the situation with patience and understanding.”

The Government of Canada has pledged to match dollar-for-dollar, up to $50 million dollars, the contributions of Canadians, so every dollar donated makes a difference. By continuing to give to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, Canadians can be sure that their contributions are having an immediate impact for the people of Haiti.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to tThe HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, visit humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to theTHE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

-30-

For more information: Patrick Jacob ,

Tel: (613) 241-3512 x 230 , Cell: (613) 983-3512

TODAY’S PHOTOS AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

NEW B-ROLL AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

HAITI UPDATE (19.01.10)

19/01/2010

Embargoed until Tuesday, January 19, 2010 at 8:00 a.m

MEDIA ADVISORY

JANUARY 19, 2010 - OTTAWA – The HUMANITARIAN COALITION’s members will host a teleconference call today, Tuesday, January 19, 2010 at 1:00 pm to provide a one-week update on the Haitian Earthquake rescue and relief effort.

CARE Canada President and CEO, Kevin McCort, Oxfam Canada’s Executive Director Robert Fox, Oxfam-Québec’s, Interim CEO, Michel Verret and Save the Children Canada’s President and CEO David Morley, will outline progress and challenges in delivering aid to the earthquake ravaged island to date.


ALL MEDIA ARE INVITED TO REGISTER AND PARTICIPATE ON THE CALL:

DATE:                            Tuesday, January 19, 2010

TIME:                            1:00 pm

REGISTER FOR THE CALL:              

Accredited media are asked to email Patrick Jacob () to confirm participation and to obtain conference call number.


The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.

To donate to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, log onto humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

-30-

For more information or to register for the call:

Patrick Jacob 

Tel: (613) 241-3512 x 230
Cell: (613) 983-3512

HAITI UPDATE:  AID GETTING THROUGH

18/01/2010

 

 

 

 

TODAY’S PHOTOS AVAILABLE AT: www.humanitariancoalition.ca/

NEW B-ROLL AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca/

January 18, 2010- (OTTAWA)–The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, says that despite the massive devastation to Port-au-Prince and the surrounding region, aid is finding its way through to Haitians in need. CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada have coordinated their fundraising efforts in Canada through the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and are working daily with the United Nations, NGOs and Haitians on the ground in their effort to distribute desperately needed supplies.

“Aid workers are reporting back that the scale of devastation caused by Tuesday’s earthquake in Haiti is horrifying and that logistical challenges persist, yet aid is being delivered,” said Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada. “While securing and distributing aid and supplies continues to be hampered by severe challenges, aid is getting through. More emergency workers and desperately needed aid shipments are arriving regularly.”

“The need is overwhelming, but the Haitian people are doing a great deal to help one another and themselves. In most places people are helpful, orderly and hopeful.” David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada.

Today’s updates from the HUMANITARIAN COALITION include:

          o Coordination with UN and other NGOs is taking place in an ongoing basis.  
          o CARE has started distributing the 50000 water purification tablets they have received. To reach a CARE representative in Haiti contact: Kieran Green, Communications Manager, (613) 228-5678,
          o Save the Children has distributed food and water for 2000 to a local hospital. Food included items such as tinned fish, crackers, rice, beans, powdered milk, tomato sauce, bottled water, and cooking oil. Medical supplies were distributed by Save the Children on January 15 through partner Supply Chain Management Systems in response to a request from 14 hospitals and clinics. To reach a Save the Children representative in Haiti contact: Elysia Nisan, Communications Coordinator, (647) 273-7134,

To date, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has raised $3 million dollars towards its $5 million dollar goal for victims of the Haiti earthquake. The Government of Canada has pledged to match dollar-for-dollar, up to $50 million dollars, the donations of Canadians, so every dollar donated makes a difference.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, with the joint efforts of its members, CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada provides a widespread and effective response to emergencies, with a combined presence in 120 countries. In Haiti alone, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has more than 600 aid personnel on the ground, ensuring that the donations of Canadians reach those in desperate need in an efficient, effective and coordinated fashion.  

To donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, log onto humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

-30-

For more information:

Patrick Jacob



Tel: (613) 241-3512 x 230  
Cell: (613) 983-3512  

TODAY’S PHOTOS AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca/

NEW B-ROLL AVAILABLE AT: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca/

CARE Works with Women in Haiti to Keep Disease at Bay

18/01/2010

Humanitarian Group Teaches Water Purification Techniques in Quake's Wake

PORT-AU-PRINCE (January 18, 2010) - CARE's disaster-response teams find themselves in a race against time in earthquake-ravaged Haiti, coaching survivors how to purify contaminated water and preparing hygiene kits to help prevent a secondary crisis: the outbreak of disease.

The Haitian capital lacks sewer infrastructure. And the massive quake ruptured water lines, creating a perfect formula for the spread of water-borne disease, particularly as those left homeless are forced into close quarters with limited options for sanitation.

Safe water is crucial for every survivor of Tuesday's quake – but especially for pregnant women, new mothers, and small children, said Dr. Franck Geneus, coordinator of CARE's health program in Haiti. Some 37,000 pregnant women in the disaster zone are in desperate need of food, clean drinking water and/or access to health care. "We are concerned that women may stop breastfeeding because they do not have enough food or water themselves," Geneus said. "That poses a huge risk to newborns."

Dr. Geneus and other CARE staffers have hit the streets to give women a crash course in using the 600,000 water-purification packets CARE is distributing in Port-au-Prince. CARE shows them how to empty the powder into buckets, wait for solids to form and strain the clumps out with cloth. In minutes, filthy brown water turns sparkling clear. Each packet can purify 10 liters (nearly three gallons) of water, enough for someone to drink safely for four days.

"CARE staff train local volunteers, so they can teach others and distribute the packets according to a careful inventory of families at the site – to be sure it reaches those most in need," he explained.  "It's the quickest way to reach the most people."

But to use the powder, called Pur, requires two five-gallon containers – one for dirty water, the other for clean. And many here don't even have a bucket to their name, said Sophie Perez, CARE's country director in Haiti.

"We will distribute the Pur along with hygiene kits in the coming days, packed into large buckets that people can use," Perez said.  "The kits will also contain crucial items, from soap to sanitary napkins, to help survivors stay healthy under these appalling conditions."

Mounting garbage adds to the risk, Perez said from the edge of Port-au-Prince, in Pétionville. There, overflowing garbage trucks stand idle and the gutters are clogged with plastic bags, bottles and trash of all kinds. People tie handkerchiefs over their faces, desperately trying to stem the overwhelming stench. "We urgently need to address the waste disposal issue," Perez said. "If that garbage keeps accumulating, it will certainly spread disease."

CARE has been working in Haiti since 1954. CARE's more than 130 staff in Haiti includes emergency personnel who were part of the response to the devastating Hurricane Hanna in 2008. In Haiti, CARE's programs focus on governance, HIV/AIDS, reproductive health, maternal and child health, education, food security, and water and sanitation.

The scale of devastation caused by Tuesday's earthquake in Haiti is horrifying. Aid workers point to logistical challenges of securing and distributing aid and supplies because of severely impacted staff, damage to the airport and port, and security concerns. Electricity and water have been cut off, fuel supplies are low, and roads are damaged, further hampering efforts.

Despite these challenges, aid is getting through, and more emergency workers and aid shipments are arriving regularly. In addition to the water purification packets, CARE will soon distribute food rations, tents, mattresses and basic hygiene kits.

CARE, which focuses on empowering women and girls as part of our global fight against poverty, has partnered with other organizations to meet the urgent needs of pregnant and lactating women left particularly vulnerable after the earthquake. CARE has extensive ongoing health programs in Haiti, and will coordinate with the local government to rebuild their health capacity.

CARE knows that in emergencies like this, women and girls are at increased risk of sexual violence, exploitation and abuse when seeking food and other services.  CARE and its partners will address gender-specific needs in Haiti. We are working out the particulars of this now.

CARE has launched a $10 million appeal for a three-year emergency relief and recovery program for the affected population. CARE recognizes the following partners for their generous donations and in-kind support of our emergency relief efforts: Abbott, Baxter, Cargill, CARFAX, Cox Enterprises, Delta Air Lines, General Mills, Goldman Sachs, Hanesbrands Inc., InterContinental Hotels Group, JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft, Pfizer, Potash, Procter & Gamble, Quiznos, Teavana, 3M, Troutman Sanders and UPS.

 

For Full Article, See Source : Care International

Latest Photos from the ground

18/01/2010

New photos from the ground have been added. Please check back regularly to see new photos, or subscribe to our RSS feed.

Latest Photos

AID RELIEF GETTING TO HAITIANS

17/01/2010

Members of HUMANITARIAN COALITION distribute relief to respond to Haitian earthquake, more is urgently needed

January 17, 2010 – (Ottawa) Members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are on the ground in Port-au-Prince distributing relief to meet the immediate needs of Haitians, and are urging Canadians to continue to support the mass-scale relief efforts in the devastated country.

To date, these are some of the member agency’s responses include:

    * Oxfam is providing “bladders”, of 10,000 litres of water to 10,000 Haitians who have been displaced in a former golf course in Delmas and to a hospital in Carrefour.
          o To arrange filming of the water distribution, journalists should call or text Oxfam Press Officer Caroline Gluck, in Port-au-Prince, on +44 7867 976041. Also on-site will be Karim Deniel, on + 52155 91992 886
    * CARE has distributed an eight-day supply of water purification tablets for 12,000 people.  CARE has also bought 5000 hygiene kits and 5000 mattress from local merchants. Distribution will begin shortly.
          o To get more information about CARE’s distributions on the ground in Haiti, contact Rick Perera: 1-404-457-7427
    * Save the Children Canada has distributed IV solutions and other medicines to 14 hospital and clinics. As well as distributing hygiene kits to help stop the spread of disease that is common immediately after a disaster.

 

Despite the relief efforts underway, there have been major challenges in coordinating the response. Major challenges include the limited capacity of the Port au Prince airport, which has delayed the arrival of goods; significant damage to roads and all other infrastructure and the pure and utter destruction of the capital city.  

-30-

NOTES TO EDITORS:

To arrange interviews with representatives in Haiti, and for more information, please contact: 

Kieran Green    

  

Cell: 613.799.7562  
  

With a combined presence in 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies. In addition, the campaign has one call centre, one phone number and a joint website for online donations in order to make donating easy for Canadians. Public service announcements and web communications are coordinated to represent a single and unified voice.

To donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, log onto humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

AID RELIEF EFFORTS REACH HAITIANS

16/01/2010

Members of HUMANITARIAN COALITION distribute relief to respond to

Haitian earthquake, more is urgently needed

 

January 16, 2010 – (Ottawa) Members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are on the ground in Port-au-Prince distributing relief to meet the immediate needs of Haitians, and are urging Canadians to continue to support the mass-scale relief efforts in the devastated country.

 
 “We are very used to working in extreme situations, and the current situation is amongst the most extreme we’ve seen,” said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada. “But we want Canadians to know that we are getting aid to thousands in need.”

 

 
Members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are focused twenty-four hours a day to get aid into Haiti. Immediate needs include safe water, food and shelter. Help is particularly crucial for the estimated 37,000 pregnant women affected, as well as for millions of youth and children. Approximately half of Haiti’s population is under 18.

After the initial distribution of immediate supplies, the members have begun ramping-up relief efforts. Some of the member agency’s responses include:

• Oxfam is providing “bladders”, of 10,000 litres of water to 10,000 Haitians who have been displaced in a former golf course in Delmas and to a hospital in Carrefour.

• Today, CARE is distributing an eight-day supply of water purification tablets for 12,000 people. A focus will be placed on pregnant women and children.

• Save the Children Canada has distributed IV solutions and other medicines to 14 hospital and clinics. As well as distributing hygiene kits to help stop the spread of disease that is common immediately after a disaster.

 

Despite the relief efforts underway, there have been major challenges in coordinating the response. Major challenges include the limited capacity of the Port au Prince airport, which has delayed the arrival of goods; significant damage to roads and all other infrastructure; significant damage to the government of Haiti, as well as their limited capacity to assist in such an extensive response; significant damage to UN operations, as well as the death of numerous staff members; and the pure and utter destruction of the capital city.  One-third of the population of Haiti has been affected, which means the needs are beyond anything that has been seen this side of the world in generations.

“While aid agencies have reached out to tens of thousands, there are about three million people affected in Haiti. To put this into context, this is comparable to every single person living in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia combined,” said Robert Fox, Executive Director for Oxfam Canada. “These relief efforts are the tip of the iceberg. The needs are massive, so need the support of Canadians to reach Haitians.”

To date, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has reached nearly half of its $5 million target.

With a combined presence in 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies. In addition, the campaign has one call centre, one phone number and a joint website for online donations in order to make donating easy for Canadians. Public service announcements and web communications are coordinated to represent a single and unified voice.

To donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, log onto humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

-30-

NOTES TO EDITORS:

To arrange interviews with representatives in Haiti, and for more information, please contact:

Kieran Green    Alexandra Lopoukhine 

   

Cell: 613.799.7562  Cell: 613.850.9723

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION Sets $5 Million Initial Goal

15/01/2010

"Our $5 million goal is based on early assessments," said Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada. "This is what we are aiming for, but there is the chance that this number will increase as the assessment of the damage becomes clearer in the coming days and weeks."

 

Thanks those who have made significant contributions to date for the Haiti earthquake relief

 

OTTAWA, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Jan. 15, 2010) - The HUMANITARIAN COALITION has set an initial fundraising target of $5 million for the emergency relief efforts of Haiti, it was announced today.

"Our $5 million goal is based on early assessments," said Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada. "This is what we are aiming for, but there is the chance that this number will increase as the assessment of the damage becomes clearer in the coming days and weeks."

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION members expected to reach the $2 million mark by end of Friday, thanks to the generosity of Canadians, corporations, unions and businesses who have shown their support to the Haiti earthquake relief efforts.

As assessments of the damage caused by Tuesday's earthquake continue, the needs are becoming more apparent. People are in desperate need of clean water and shelter. All the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION are working with local partners to ensure the life-saving supplies reach Port-au-Prince.

"The needs are great. We cannot underestimate the value of every dollar raised in this appeal," said Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada. "We are working round-the-clock to get the relief supplies to the affected people. We are thankful to the generosity of the many businesses and people who have supported the appeal thus far."

NOTES TO EDITORS:

With a combined presence in 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies. In addition, the campaign has one call centre, one phone number and a joint website for online donations in order to make donating easy for Canadians. Public service announcements and web communications are coordinated to represent a single and unified voice.

 

Full Release

Overwhelming Canadian response to Haiti

14/01/2010

THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION is thanking Canadians for their generosity, and is asking them to be patient if they are experiencing problems while trying to make a donation online or by phone. The sheer level of internet and phone donations is stretching the ability of computer servers and phone call centres, but the donations are still urgently needed for the relief effort.

“The generosity of Canadians in the first 24 hours of this disaster is one of the most moving things I have ever experienced. It is literally overwhelming our donation systems,” said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada. “To those who are having difficulty getting through by internet or phone to make their donation to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, thank you and please be patient. We are working on our systems to adjust to the sheer magnitude of your response.”

Call volumes are expected to increase following the Government of Canada announcement that it will match donations dollar-for-dollar. The matching funds will double the impact of relief efforts, saving even more lives.

The members of THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION have staff already on the ground who have begun assessments of the damage. They have reported approximately 50 per cent of houses were reported as significantly damaged or destroyed.  Estimates indicate there are tens of thousands dead. Additional workers from the HUMANITARIAN COALITION members are beginning to arrive in Haiti today.

Save the Children in the Dominican Republic is procuring hygiene kits.  The team arriving in Haiti today will take hygiene kits with them for distribution. CARE is working with the World Food Program to arrange food for distribution, including high protein biscuits. Oxfam is supporting rescue efforts, assessing the damage and responding with public health, water and sanitation services to prevent the spread of waterborne diseases.

With a combined presence in 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies. In addition, the campaign has one call centre, one phone number and a joint website for online donations in order to make donating easy for Canadians. Public service announcements and web communications are coordinated to represent a single and unified voice.

To donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, log onto humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

For more information:
Kieran Green

Tel: 613.228.5678
Cell: 613.799.7562

Press Conference: Appeal Launch

13/01/2010

The member organizations of the Humanitarian Coalition (Save the Children Canada, Care Canada, Oxfam Canada and Oxfam-Québec) are launching a public appeal with the support of its partners, including the CSN, the CSQ, the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal, the Fédération interprofessionnelle de la santé du Québec, the FTQ, the Jean Coutu Group, the ROCAHD, and Mélanie Renaud, Oxfam-Québec’s ambassadress for Haiti.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pierre Véronneau, Executive Director of Oxfam-Québec announces the launch of the Humanitarian Coalition Appeal. Photo Credit: Sylvie Trépanier

“We will be drawing upon our 30 years of experience in Haiti to protect the children who have become vulnerable in the wake of this terrible disaster.  We will focus efforts on their protection and reunifying them with their families while providing essential supplies for survival.”  declared Rosine Assamoi, Technical Advisor for Save the Children Canada.

 “The people of Haiti are living through an absolute nightmare. They have been hit time and time again by natural disasters and now, more than ever, they urgently need the help of Canadians.” said CARE’s Vice President of Operations, Bogdan Dumitru, who is being deployed to Haiti tomorrow.  “We are facing a catastrophe.”

 “We are calling on Canadians to dig deep and show their generosity at this time of great need.” said Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada. “It’s crucial that we get help to the people of Haiti as quickly as possible to support the relief and reconstructions efforts underway.”

"With a team that has been on the spot for several years, Oxfam-Québec is in a position to take direct and immediate action in such an emergency", adds Pierre Véronneau, General Director of Oxfam-Québec. "We are calling on people to be really generous in helping to meet the tremendous needs that this disaster is generating. We have to think not only about coping with the immediate emergency, but also about reconstruction.

“Field assessments are now underway to determine the kind of programs and the scope of financial assistance needed. But we already know for sure that the needs will be enormous. That's why the Humanitarian Coalition and its partners are appealing to people’s solidarity and generosity to come to the aid of the earthquake victims.”

- 30 -

People are urged to send donations to the THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, by calling
1 800.464.9154, through the internet, or by mail to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

Media contact:
Kieran Green

Tel: 613.228.5678
Cell: 613.799.7562

Haiti Earthquake

12/01/2010

Canadian aid agencies, under the banner of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, are urging Canadians to support the relief efforts in Haiti after today’s earthquake that has devastated the area of country’s capital city, Port au Prince. 

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, comprised of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, is working to address the needs of the survivors of this earthquake.  The four member agencies are joining together to raise funds for the hundreds of thousands of people affected by this humanitarian crisis.

Through the coordination of these top agencies, Canadian donations will be allocated where they will be most effective.

"At this stage it is too early to tell the severity of the earthquake in Haiti, but the early signs are not good with communications down across the country,” said Michel Verret, Development and Public Relations Director of Oxfam-Québec. “We are well prepared to help, with public health, water and sanitation teams in Port au Prince ready to respond.  Haiti is the poorest country in the Western hemisphere where 85% of people already live in poverty, given the desperate needs that people face on a day to day basis, this earthquake is grim news for the poor people of Haiti."

HUMANITARIAN COALITION members are already present in the country.  The emergency response will be based entirely on meeting the needs of the most vulnerable. Emergency programmes will include the delivery of safe drinking water, food, shelter materials and hygiene kits.

"Given the location and the sheer intensity of the earthquake, we are expecting this to be worse than any earthquake we've seen in this region in a recent memory. Hundreds of thousands of people will most likely be affected," said Alain Lapierre, leader of the CARE Canada emergency team being deployed to Haiti. "The survivors will need clean water, shelter, and medical aid - particularly the most vulnerable women, children and the elderly. The faster we can get it to them, the more lives we will save."

With a combined presence in 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies. In addition, the campaign has one call centre, one phone number and a joint website for online donations in order to make donating easy for Canadians. Public service announcements and web communications are coordinated to represent a single and unified voice.

To donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, log onto humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3

For more information:
Kieran Green

Tel: 613.228.5678
Cell: 613.799.7562

Rains fail again across East Africa

17/12/2009

Malnutrition rates up, cholera reported, millions of livestock lost, aid agency calls for boost in appeal funds

November rains that were expected to ease the hunger crisis in East Africa have failed yet again in some of the worst hit areas, Oxfam warned today, as it appealed for more funds to boost its aid package for those in need.

Malnourished cow in northern Kenya - Photo: Tim Freccia/CARE/2009

Large parts of Turkana in northern Kenya, virtually the whole of Somaliland, and the Central Highlands and the Ogaden of Ethiopia have received less than five per cent of normal rainfall in November (*see map). In parts of Turkana there has been just 12mm of rain in the last three months. Many parts of the northern Somaliland region have had less than 2mm of rain in the past six weeks. This is the sixth successive season of poor rains in Somalia, which is experiencing its worst drought in 20 years. The next rains are not due until April 2010 in most of the driest locations. Millions of people in these areas are of particular concern as they face at least another six months of hunger and destitution. Other areas of East Africa have had some favourable rains in October but aid is still desperately needed. 

“The rains were many people’s last hope but they have failed again,” said Jeremy Loveless, Oxfam’s Deputy Humanitarian Director, who has just visited Somaliland. “While some parts of the region have had some rain in October, others have not received a drop.”  Malnutrition rates are spiralling as a result of the prolonged drought. In Turkana, one of the worst affected areas, nearly one in three people are now malnourished. There and in the Ngorongoro region of northern Tanzania, there has been a serious spike in malnutrition among children under five years old. One clinic in Tanzania has reported a 400 per cent increase in cases since August. In Somalia, one in five children have been left suffering from malnutrition.

A fatal outbreak of cholera has been reported in Kenya, with over 120 deaths in the past month, including many women and children. Over 1.5 million animals have died in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, with an estimated net worth to the region of nearly £220 million. In Ngorongoro, communities report that 70 per cent of all their cattle have died and one in ten families have lost all their animals. People are so desperate that they are selling their few remaining cattle for as little as $4 each - down from the normal price of $200 and only just enough money to buy a family five days’ supply of maize. Deadly animal diseases including pneumonia have been recorded in Ethiopia.

The crisis is most severe in parts of Somalia, where worsening conflict and the drought has left 3.6 million people - a third of the country’s population - in need of aid. In Somaliland, herders say they have lost 70-80 per cent of their animals. Some initial rainfall in early October brought signs of hope, but after only a few weeks the rain stopped again in many of the driest and most vulnerable areas.

In northern and north-eastern Uganda, 1.4 million people are now urgently in need of aid. The Karamoja region is particularly badly affected, where there has been virtually no rain and the main harvest has produced less than half the usual amount of food. Food stocks are expected to run out by January, and the price of staple foods has doubled. In Tanzania, the number of people in need of aid has now leaped from 279,000 earlier this year to over 1.5 million people.

In parts of north-western Kenya, the rains have stopped completely in the past month. Nationwide, over 500,000 animals are estimated to have died in the drought, at a cost of over £160 million to the local economy. Many people are now voting with their feet and migrating to towns and cities in search of work and food. However, many people are no better off in urban areas, where high unemployment and rising costs mean hundreds of thousands of people struggle to find even one reasonable meal a day.

Ethiopia is one of the worst affected countries, with nearly 5 million people in need of urgent aid. In parts of the south and northeast, initially promising rains have stopped abruptly, with the little pasture and shrubs generated by the rain now close to drying up, and the current harvest expected to be well below normal. “In many areas this is the fourth, fifth or sixth season of poor rains in a row. More must be done to invest in helping these communities cope with the dry years - through long term rural development and investing in national agriculture. But in the short-term lives are at stake and emergency aid is needed now,” said Loveless.

 * see map of November rainfall from USGS. Click here: http://www.oxfam.org.uk/oxfam_in_action/emergencies/downloads/eastafrica_map.pdf

25 Years after the 1984 Famine in Ethiopia

23/10/2009

International aid agency Oxfam has called for a radical shake-up in the way the world deals with food crises in Ethiopia and beyond. Although food aid can save lives, the Humanitarian Coalition member said the dominance of this approach fails to offer long-term solutions to break these cyclical and chronic crises.

In its report, “Band Aids and Beyond,” published to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the Ethiopia famine, Oxfam says international donors need to adopt a new approach to humanitarian disasters which  focuses on preparing communities to prevent and deal with disasters such as drought before they strike, rather than relying mainly on short-term emergency relief, such as imported food aid.

To read the report "Band Aids and Beyond", download it here.

Leading relief agencies widen response

08/10/2009

Canadian aid agencies, under the banner of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, are widening relief efforts as earthquakes and typhoons continue to wreak havoc in the Asia Pacific region.

Two powerful earthquakes triggered a tsunami warning, after a typhoon caused serious damage in parts of Japan. This follows on a week of devastating disasters in the Philippines, Indonesia, Vietnam and Samoa.

“We are continuing to reach communities with hygiene and sanitation supplies,” said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada. “And, importantly, we have established child-friendly spaces so that children can begin the process of healing from the trauma they have experienced. As the situation on the ground changes, we will respond.”

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, comprised of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, is continuing to raise funds for the hundreds of thousands of people affected by recent events. Through the coordination of these top agencies, Canadian donations will be allocated where they will be most effective.

“The hard work is just beginning and we cannot turn our attention away,” said Oxfam Canada Executive Director Robert Fox. “Reaching people who’ve been cut off by mudslides and debilitated by shock and grief is essential. They need food, shelter and clean water not only to survive but to prevent a public health emergency.”  

Emergency response has so far included the delivery of safe drinking water, food, shelter materials and hygiene kits.

To obtain footage from the Philippines, or to arrange interviews with Canadian personnel there, please contact:

Elysia Nisan

905-464-6648 (mobile)

To arrange Interviews with Canadian personnel in Indonesia, please contact

Kieran Green

613-799-7562 (mobile)

For more information, please contact:
Karen Palmer

613-240-3047 (mobile)

Race to prevent public health crisis

06/10/2009

Members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, are racing to prevent a public health crisis as aid efforts in the region move from recovery to humanitarian relief.

Despite heavy rains that continue to fall in the Philippines and roads cut off by mudslides in Indonesia, emergency workers are making extraordinary efforts to deliver aid. Clean water, blankets and shelter are vital to preventing disease outbreaks.

In Indonesia, CARE Canada is distributing aid in hard-hit areas reachable only by motorbike or on foot. CARE emergency workers say remote areas were hardest-hit but have received little aid because of blocked roads. CARE is distributing emergency kits consisting of a hygiene kit, blankets, sarongs, jerry cans for storing water and water purification solution. CARE is helping 5,000 people in the initial days of the response, but plans to reach up to 40,000 people as more supplies and funding come in.

In the Philippines, Oxfam Canada and Oxfam-Quebec emergency teams are providing blankets, soaps, cleaning equipment, clothes and water containers to 100,000 of the worst-affected people. Oxfam is also providing small cash grants and shelter at evacuation sites as part of its initial response. In Samoa, aid workers are supporting local partners as they dig out debris from the tsunami and lay lost family members to rest.

In the Philippines, there is a persistent concern over the water, sanitation and hygiene conditions, especially in crowded evacuation centers in metro Manila. The lack of toilets in both evacuation centres and in affected communities must be urgently addressed. An increasing number of children in evacuation centres have developed coughs, colds, fever and diarrhea. Save the Children has distributed family hygiene kits and baby hygiene kits that are specifically designed to meet the urgent needs of infant care.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, comprised of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, is raising funds for the hundreds of thousands of people affected by these events. Through the coordination of these top agencies, Canadian donations will be allocated where they will be most effective.

- 30 -

To arrange interviews with Canadian personnel in the Philippines, please contact:

Elysia Nisan

416-218-1882
905-464-6648 (mobile)

To arrange Interviews with Canadian personnel in Indonesia, please contact

Kieran Green

613-799-7562 (mobile)

For more information, please contact:

Karen Palmer

613-240-3047 (mobile)

 

Philippines and Indonesia: Canadians on the ground

05/10/2009

CANADIAN AID WORKERS ON THE GROUND – REACHING INTO MOST REMOTE AFFECTED AREAS

Canadian aid workers are on the ground in the typhoon-ravaged Philippines, and in Indonesia are heading into the most remote and hard-to-reach earthquake-devastated regions.

As part of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, which brings together four top Canadian agencies, Colleen Malone, an aid worker with Save the Children Canada, is on the ground in the Philippines, which has endured two typhoons in the space of one week.  She has information on the current conditions facing the local population including those in evacuation camps.

Dr. Phil Tanner, with CARE Canada, has arrived in the city of Padang on the Indonesian island of West Sumatra. He and the CARE emergency response teams are heading into the remote areas of the District of Pariaman, which suffered some of the worst damage from the earthquake. Because of the difficulty in reaching many parts of Pariaman, these areas have yet to receive emergency relief.

Across the region, the emergency response has so far included the delivery of safe drinking water, food, shelter materials and hygiene kits.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, comprised of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, is raising funds for the hundreds of thousands of people affected by these events. Through the coordination of these top agencies, Canadian donations will be allocated where they will be most effective.

With a combined presence in 120 countries, joint efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide an effective response to emergencies. The campaign has one call centre, one phone number and a joint website for online donations.

To arrange interviews with Colleen Malone, please contact

Elysia Nisan
Save the Children Canada
Mobile: 905-464-6648

For Dr. Phil Tanner, please contact:

Kieran Green
CARE Canada
Mobile: 613-799-7562

For more information:

Karen Palmer, Oxfam Canada, 613-240-3047

ASIA PACIFIC DISASTERS

01/10/2009

Canadian aid agencies have come together under the banner of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION to urge Canadians to support relief efforts in Asia after a series of violent storms and earthquakes hit several countries in the region.

Ottawa, ON (Oct.1) – Canadian aid agencies have come together under the banner of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION to urge Canadians to support relief efforts in Asia after a series of violent storms and earthquakes hit several countries in the region.

The devastating week began with floods in the Philippines, caused by a tropical storm that later strengthened to a typhoon as it hit Vietnam. An earthquake then triggered a tsunami in the small island nation of Samoa, washing away homes and businesses. A day later, a powerful earthquake and its aftershocks collapsed numerous buildings on the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Another typhoon is gathering strength off the coast of the Philippines and is expected to make landfall soon.

In the face of such a confluence of crises, the HUMANITARIAN COALITION, comprised of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, is raising funds for the hundreds of thousands of people affected by these events. Through the coordination of these top agencies, Canadian donations will be allocated where they will be most effective.

“The scope of these disasters is dramatically widespread with hundreds of thousands  of children and families affected by collapsing buildings, flood waters, loss of electricity and lack of access to food and clean water,” said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada.

Emergency programs include the delivery of safe drinking water, food, shelter materials and hygiene kits.

“In Indonesia, we had aid ready because this area is susceptible to this type of tragedy. Communications with the quake-zone are difficult and we are hoping for the best but having to plan for the worst,” said Oxfam-Quebec Executive Director Pierre Véronneau. “ In Philippines and Vietnam, we’re focusing on where needs are the greatest. Our biggest worry is public health. If it’s not addressed quickly, it could lead to another disaster .”

With a combined presence in 120 countries, joint efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide an effective response to emergencies. The campaign has one call centre, one phone number and a joint website for online donations.

To donate, please visit humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 7023,  Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0.

 

For more information:

Elysia Nisan                                                                   Justine Lesage

                                         
(416) 218-1882                                                                 514-389-7922 x. 237

 

Indonesia Earthquakes: Statement

01/10/2009

Ottawa, ON (Oct. 1, 2009) HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are working directly or through partners in Indonesia as the situation evolves following the recent earthquakes in Sumatra. CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada are all carefully monitoring the situation and preparing appropriate humanitarian relief activities.

In this complex and rapidly evolving crisis, HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are providing additional aid through existing programs, including urgently needed food, water and medical supplies. Though total estimates vary, tens of thousands of civilians are known to be directly affected by the damage caused following the recent earthquakes.

Member agencies are carrying out assessments across the region and will be revising their response plans as the situation evolves. In the next few days the information from these assessments will determine the types of programs and scale of funding support that will be required to assist those affected by this crisis.

For more information, please contact the member agencies at the coordinates in the right hand column.

The following HUMANITARIAN COALITION members are presently receiving donations in support of the humanitarian response.  Please visit their sites to make a donation.

CARE Canada

Oxfam Canada

Oxfam-Québec

Save the Children Canada

Statement on Typhoon Ketsena in South East Asia

30/09/2009

Ottawa, ON (Sept 30, 2009) HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are working directly or through partners in the Philippines, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia as the situation evolves following the passage of Typhoon Ketsana. CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada are all carefully monitoring the situation and preparing appropriate humanitarian relief activities.

In this complex and rapidly evolving crisis, HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are providing additional aid through existing programs, including urgently needed food, water and medical supplies. Though total estimates vary, hundreds of thousands of civilians are known to be directly affected by the damage caused following the landfall of Typhoon Ketsana.

Member agencies are carrying out assessments across the region and will help people either return to their homes or find temporary shelter until they judge it safe to return home. In the next few days the information from these assessments will determine the types of programs and scale of funding support that could be required to assist those affected by this crisis.

For more information, please contact the member agencies at the coordinates in the right hand column.

The following HUMANITARIAN COALITION members are presently receiving donations in support of the humanitarian response.  Please visit their sites to make a donation.

CARE Canada

Oxfam Canada

Oxfam-Québec

Save the Children Canada

The Economist: “A Catastophe is Looming”

24/09/2009

Governments are at their wits’ end to keep their hungry people alive

Published by The Economist on Friday, September 24, 2009
To read this article on The Economist website, click here.

(NAIROBI) THIS year’s drought is the worst in east Africa since 2000, and possibly since 1991. Famine stalks the land. The failure of rains in parts of Ethiopia may increase the number needing food handouts by 5m, in addition to the 8m already getting them, in a population of 80m. The production of Kenyan maize, the country’s staple, is likely to drop by one-third, hitting poor farmers’ families hardest. The International Committee of the Red Cross says famine in Somalia is going to be worse than ever. Handouts are urgently needed by roughly 3.6m Somalis, nearly half the resident population (several million having already emigrated during years of strife). In fractious northern Uganda cereal output is likely to fall by half. Parts of South Sudan, Eritrea, the Central African Republic and Tanzania are suffering too. Rich countries are being less generous than usual. The UN’s World Food Programme says it has only $24m of the $300m it needs just to feed hungry Kenyans for the next six months.

In Mwingi district, in Kenya’s Kamba region, the crops have totally failed. Villagers are surviving on monthly government handouts of maize-meal, rice and a little cooking oil. Worse than the hunger, say local leaders, is the thirst. People are digging wells by hand, but they hit rock. They plead for the means to go deeper but they cannot afford the dynamite or machinery.

In the pastoral areas of northern Kenya, southern Ethiopia and south Somalia the death of livestock on a massive scale has sharpened conflict. Oromo rebels in south and east Ethiopia and Somali secessionists in the east of the country are likely to fight more fiercely. The drought may strengthen the hand of the Islamist Shabab movement, linked to al-Qaeda, in south Somalia; it uses food aid to control the people. Recent cattle raids in northern Kenya have left scores dead, with unprecedented numbers of women and children among the victims. Fighting may intensify until the land becomes greener again.

When will that be? Meteorologists reckon the rains due in October and November will be heavier than usual. That would be good, if the east African authorities were prepared. But they are not. Mud slides and floods are likely, with streams and rivers carrying off the topsoil. Malaria and cholera may increase. Surviving cattle, weakened by drought, will drown or die of cold.

Even the cities—and their economies—will be sorely afflicted, since 95% of Ethiopia’s power and 70% of Kenya’s is hydroelectric. With rivers down to a trickle or drying up completely, dams are running out of water; some are empty. Turbines have shut down. Electricity throughout east Africa is patchier than usual, just when governments are trying to pep their economies up.

The delayed opening of a big Ethiopian dam capable of producing 300MW has resulted in daily blackouts in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. That, says the government, has reduced economic growth by two percentage points to 7%; others guess that growth has fallen to less than 5%. A British firm, Aggreko, has won a contract to set up electrical generators to supply 30MW to Ethiopia’s grid.

The same firm has also signed a deal with Kenya to double the power it temporarily supplies the country, to 290MW. Kenya has been rationing electricity. Most of its townspeople are without power for three days a week. Aggreko will keep more lights on but far more expensively. Small firms and poorer customers may be pushed into the dark.

The high price of food and water is making governments more disliked. The price of maize-meal has more than doubled since 2007. Jerry cans of water, which is often filthy, cost four times more than a year ago. With luck, governments may be forced to improve their management of water. Villagers may be persuaded to build terraces to stop topsoil running off. Dams need better maintenance and desilting. Officials should be shamed into stopping their friends from stealing or wasting water. As the cost of diesel power soars, schemes for renewable power and plans to link the region’s power grids may be speeded up. High prices have encouraged some industries to find their own solutions. An Indian cement firm, Sanghi, says it plans to run a new Kenyan cement factory on its own hydroelectric power.

Amid the gloom, a few companies and countries have benefited. Shares in the Kenya Power and Lighting Company have risen this year in expectation of more demand. The main Kenyan power supplier, KenGen, has sold bonds to finance a scheme to expand its output by 500MW. Malawi, which periodically suffered famine until a recent fertiliser-subsidy scheme came good, is to export maize to Kenya.

The drought cycle in east Africa has been contracting sharply. Rains used to fail every nine or ten years. Then the cycle seemed to go down to five years. Now, it seems, the region faces drought every two or three years. The time for recovery—for rebuilding stocks of food and cattle—is ever shorter. And if the rains fail before the end of this year, an unimaginably dreadful catastrophe could ensue.

Copyright: The Economist

“We must make famine in Africa personal”

12/09/2009

By KEVIN McCORT
Appeared on September 12 or 13 in the Saint John Telegraph-Journal, the Vancouver Sun, the Edmonton Journal and the St. John's Telegram.
Read the story on the newspaper website by clicking on their names above.

*********************

For those of us who survived the 1980s, the 1984 famine in Ethiopia is difficult to forget. Massive news coverage permanently embedded in our minds the image of the starving African child with the bloated belly. Scores of celebrities rushed to join the cause. Live Aid became one of the most watched events in TV history. Millions of dollars were raised.

On the 25th anniversary of the famine, it's not just Ethiopia facing another disaster. Kenya, Somalia, and other East African neighbours face a potential famine because of a perfect storm of crop failures, lack of rain, wars and internal political conflict. In 1984, eight million were people affected. Now it's over 20 million.

Clear the front pages! Dispatch the media teams! Cue the celebrities"¦ or not.

How times have changed. A small handful of Canadian journalists are in East Africa getting the story, but don't expect to see it on the front page. When informed of a hunger crisis in Africa, the average news assignment editor will most often politely respond: "Yes, but what's the news?"

The average Canadian isn't much different. A story about an abused puppy that has been rescued will have us jumping for the remote to bump the volume. Twenty million starving Africans is just the 10-second news clip we have to wait through to hear more about the puppy. After 25 years of one crisis after another in this part of Africa or that, too many of us have become desensitized. Blasé. Another war"¦ another famine"¦

I believe that part of the problem is how the story is told; it's up to organizations like CARE Canada to improve how we tell the stories of those affected by such disasters. One abused puppy is easy to understand. Twenty million starving people is just too big and impersonal to comprehend. What we really need to hear about is Paninah. She is a mother of two school-age children in an urban area just outside Nairobi, Kenya. She's poor but independent, and she, like many Canadians, works multiple jobs to support her family. But it's getting harder to find work. The drought has reached into the cities, and even the crops in the small urban agricultural plots have failed. The price for both in Nairobi has literally doubled. So now Paninah struggles to buy food and water. She does not have a food bank to go to, nor employment insurance to help her get through this rough patch. This is any parent's nightmare: Paninah is completely on her own. Once self-sufficient, she does not know what tomorrow will bring her or her children.

Now that we know Paninah, this is no longer about the story of 20 million faceless people. It's the story of a real person, struggling to make ends meet just like all of us - but facing greater odds than most. Now the story is personal.

And even though the crisis sounds like the same old story, it really is news. There are new and frightening elements. This time there is a perfect storm, and it's hitting not just one country but an entire region. In recent years there has been the ongoing internal conflict in Somalia, war between Ethiopia and Somalia, and the 2008 post-election violence in Kenya. The normal ability of people to cope with environmental disaster has been significantly reduced. Many parts of the Horn of Africa are experiencing an unprecedented fifth consecutive year of drought. The drought and crop failures spreading into parts of Kenya that have until now been mostly unaffected - brought on by climate change. And for the first time the drought is reaching into the urban centres of Kenya to a degree not seen before, affecting the urban poor like Paninah. Malnutrition rates are now up around 18 per cent.

A sign of how serious the situation is: last week the Humanitarian Coalition decided the East Africa hunger crisis warranted the launch of a joint appeal. The Humanitarian Coalition is a partnership of some of Canada's leading aid agencies - CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam Quebec and Save the Children. In the most critical emergencies these four groups set aside their individual fundraising appeals and work together in order to increase efficiency and ensure an even greater percentage of Canadian donations gets to those who need it the most. The last time the Humanitarian Coalition launched a joint appeal was in May 2008, when Cyclone Nargis killed over 100,000 people in Burma.

At the end of the day, yes"¦ it's another drought in Africa. They happen. With climate change they are happening more often. This drought is complicated by conflicts. Those happen too. However while we can't prevent all droughts and we can't prevent all conflicts, we can prevent hunger. 2009 does not have to turn into 1984 redux. If we have to wait for Bob Geldof to organize another concert, though, it'll already be too late.

But first we have to stop seeing just another crisis in Africa. This time, we have to make it personal.

Kevin McCort is president and CEO of CARE Canada.

East Africa needs Canada’s help - Op-Ed by Robert Fox

12/09/2009

"Humanitarian Coalition needs your help"
By ROBERT FOX
Halifax Chronicle Herald (Sept. 12, 2009) & Saskatoon Star Pheonix (Sept. 17, 2009)
Read the story on the newspaper websites: click on their names above

National Post: Severe Hunger threatens 20M in East Africa

09/09/2009

Peter Goodspeed, The National Post 
Published: Wednesday, September 09, 2009

With war-ravaged Somalia engulfed in a fresh round of fighting, leading Canadian aid agencies predict East Africa is plunging into its worst humanitarian crisis in decades.

The Humanitarian Coalition, which includes CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Quebec and Save the Children Canada, warns East Africa faces "a perfect storm of crop failures, a multi-year lack of rain, conflicts and political turmoil," which now threatens 20 million people with severe hunger.

In Somalia, where recent fighting between Islamist rebels and Somali government forces backed by African Union peacekeepers has claimed the lives of 2,000 civilians, half the population already needs food assistance and one in five children is severely malnourished.

But fierce new fighting in Mogadishu now threatens a further deterioration in the humanitarian situation and is sending a fresh wave of refugees fleeing.

On Monday, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees announced that more than 250,000 people have been displaced by fighting in Somalia since May, pushing the number of displaced people in the country to 1.55 million.

According to the aid agencies, most of the displaced are women and children who are living without access to water, sanitation or medical care in crowded and badly managed camps in Somalia, Ethiopia and Kenya.

The Dadaab camp in northeastern Kenya, which was intended to hold 90,000 people, is now one of the world's largest single concentrations of refugees, with almost 300,000 people.

Oxfam officials recently described the camp as "barely fit for humans," saying half the people in the camp have no access to water and women and children rarely have access to adequate latrines.

Yet Oxfam predicts another 100,000 refugees may flee increased fighting in Somalia this year and seek safety in Kenya.

For the fourth year in a row, East Africa is in the grip of a devastating drought, which is killing crops, livestock and children, and displacing hundreds of thousands of people.

"The rainy seasons successively have been poor, then you have the other problems of post-election violence in Kenya, the war in Somalia and the inability to plant crops. All of this increases food insecurity," said Stephen Gwynne-Vaughan, the head of CARE's Kenya office.

"The resiliency of these people has just been stretched beyond its limits," he said. "They can't take any more shocks."

But in the face of one of the world's worst ongoing humanitarian tragedies, the international community has been slow to respond. A UN-led emergency appeal for $576-million in relief aid for Eastern Africa remains only 28% funded.

Fighting in Somalia has also made it difficult to distribute aid to hundreds of thousands of displaced people in south-central Somalia.

One of the worst-affected areas is a 15-kilometre strip of land near the town of Afgooye, 30 km southwest of the capital, Mogadishu. Originally a town of fewer than 20,000, it now has a population of 524,000 displaced people who fled fighting in Mogadishu and camped along the road from the city.

The Islamist insurgent group al Shabaab and its ally Hizbul Islam have stepped up attempts to topple the government of Somali President Sheik Sharif Sheik Ahmed, who came to power this year as part of a UN-backed peace process.

Any increase in fighting is bound to worsen Somalia's refugee problems and increase pressure on refugee camps in Ethiopia and Kenya.

Aid agencies estimate that 18,000 civilians may have died in Somalia's civil war since 2006.

"Somalis flee one of the world's most brutal conflicts and a desperate drought, only to end up in unimaginable conditions in camps that are barely fit for humans," Robert Van den Berg, Oxfam International's spokesman for the Horn of Africa, said last week.

UNICEF recently estimated that 70,000 of the 250,000 Somali children under the age of five who are living in crude refugee camps in south-central Somalia are at risk of death.

In the meantime, everyone in the region is threatened by drought.

One in 10 Kenyans is in need of food assistance, according to the World Food Program. In Ethiopia, 10 million people are threatened by hunger and malnutrition, and 4.6 million require urgent food assistance.

Hunger Crisis Looms in East Africa

04/09/2009

(Ottawa, ON) – As the world approaches the 25^th anniversary of the 1984 East African famine, Canada’s leading aid agencies are warning of a new crisis looming in East Africa. The HUMANITARIAN COALITION says a perfect storm of crop failures, a multi-year lack of rain, the effects of climate change, conflicts and political turmoil will threaten some 20 million people with severe hunger.

 

“The rainy seasons successively have been poor. Then you have the other problems of post-election violence in Kenya, the war in Somalia that led to the displacement of people and the inability to plant crops. All of this increases food insecurity,” said Stephen Gwynne-Vaughan, Country Director of CARE’s Kenya office. “The resiliency of these people has just been stretched beyond its limits. They can’t take any more shocks.”

The members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION – CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada – have already launched programs throughout the region to support the vulnerable communities being affected.  Canadians wishing to support those programs are invited to donate through the HUMANITARIAN COALITION web site: http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca

Through the coordination of these top agencies, Canadian donations will be allocated where they will be most effective.

“This is the kind of crisis that demands we work together,” said Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada. “We are playing a critical role with the people on the frontline of this crisis, the people who are desperately doing everything they can to feed their families and protect their herds. We hope Canadians will support our efforts.”

With a combined presence in over 120 countries, the joint efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION provide a widespread and effective response to emergencies. In addition, the campaign has one call centre, one phone number and a joint website for online donations in order to make donating easy for Canadians. Public service announcements and web communications are coordinated to represent a single and unified voice.

To donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, call 1-800-464-9154, log onto humanitariancoalition.ca or send donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, P.O. Box 65035, Ottawa, ON, K2G 5Y3.

For more information please contact:

Kieran Green, Communications Coordinator, CARE Canada

613-228-5678 cell: 613-799-7562

 

New collaboration with SIDGS

31/08/2009

(Ottawa, On) The HUMANITARIAN COALITION is pleased to announce a new collaboration with the School of International Development and Global Studies (SIDGS) at the University of Ottawa.

Statement on Pakistan Crisis

11/05/2009

Ottawa, ON (May 11, 2009) HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are working directly or through partners in Pakistan as the crisis in the north of the country develops. CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada are all carefully monitoring the situation and preparing appropriate humanitarian relief activities.

In this complex and rapidly evolving crisis in northern Pakistan, HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are providing additional aid through existing programs, including urgently needed food, water and medical supplies. Though total estimates vary, hundreds of thousands of civilians are known to be directly affected by the fighting between the Taliban fighters and the Pakistan army. Though at present many of these displaced people are finding shelter through their families and friends, some are relying on existing refugee camps in the region which are being extended in order to accommodate those requiring assistance.

Member agencies are carrying out assessments across the region and will help people either return to their homes or find temporary shelter until they judge it safe to return home. In the next few days the information from these assessments will determine the types of programs and scale of funding support that could be required to assist those affected by this crisis.

For more information, please contact the member agencies at the coordinates provided in the right-hand column.

Myanmar: one year later

02/05/2009

Half a Million People Remain Vulnerable in Myanmar's Irrawaddy Delta

May 2, 2009 (Ottawa, ON) - On 2 May 2008, Cyclone Nargis devastated Myanmar. The disaster left over 130,000 people dead or missing and another 2.4million people were affected. In the low-lying delta region, entire towns and villages were wiped out, crops ruined, water sources contaminated and livelihoods destroyed.

One year after Cyclone Nargis devastated southern Myanmar, members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have provided assistance to over a million people affected by this disaster. They continue to support families and children in areas hardest hit by the storm, working to improve their lives and well-being through education, health, clean water, sanitation, shelter, nutrition and livelihoods programs. But despite this assistance, much help is still needed if the people of Myanmar can hope to fully rebuild their lives.

More than 500,000 people - including 200,000 children - are still living in makeshift shelters as the monsoon season looms. The members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION continue to assist tens of thousands of affected families across the Irrawaddy Delta and are preparing to distribute additional needed resources, building materials and cash grants to people living in the low-lying region.

"Cyclone Nargis demolished farmland, cattle, fishing ponds and equipment leaving the vast majority of survivors who rely on these for an income struggling to make ends meet", said Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada.

While public attention on the emergency has long faded, the recovery of lives and livelihoods continues, despite ever-growing obstacles.

"Half a million people are living in flimsy structures, exposed to the elements," said Andrew Kirkwood, Save the Children's country director in Myanmar. "Impoverishment in the Delta, which was exacerbated by the cyclone, has made it difficult for people to rebuild their lives and homes, provide sufficient nourishment for their children or meet other basic needs."

A year after the disaster, those people who had lost everything have been dealt another blow, as failure of recent rice crops have left many without a livelihood or even enough to eat; 85% of the total population are dependent on this harvest for income, food or both.

"A perfect storm of circumstances has left millions of people in Myanmar teetering on the edge of yet another emergency. As in all disasters, those most affected are women and children, and they need our support now more than ever" says CARE Canada CEO, Kevin McCort.

A recovery plan prepared by the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), the United Nations in Myanmar and the Government of Myanmar, says that $US 690 million is needed from the international community over the next three years to restore people's lives to what they were before the cyclone.

The members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION continue to provide essential support to the people most affected by Cyclone Nargis and have put in place essential programs to help people rebuild their livelihoods through access to income generating programs and services including education, health, nutrition, clean water and sanitation.

Member Agency Responses: Overview

New collaboration with CTTIC

17/12/2008

(Ottawa, On - December 17, 2008) The HUMANITARIAN COALITION is pleased to announce a new collaboration with the Canadian Translators, Terminologists and Interpreters Council (CTTIC).

Statement on Conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo

03/11/2008

HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are working directly, or through partners, in the Democratic Republic of Congo as the crisis in the east of the country evolves. CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada are all carefully monitoring the situation and preparing appropriate humanitarian relief activities.

In this complex and rapidly evolving crisis in eastern DRC, HUMANITARIAN COALITION member agencies are providing additional aid through existing programs, including urgently needed food, water and medical supplies. Though total estimates vary, hundreds of thousands of civilians are known to be directly affected by this emergency. Many civilians have been made homeless and some camps are being extended to take extra people.

Member agencies are carrying out assessments across the region and will help people either return to their homes or find temporary shelter until they judge it safe to return home. In the next few days the information from these assessments will determine the types of programs and scale of funding support that could be required to assist those people affected by this crisis.

Humanitarian Coalition Reaches Over 200,000 Survivors

15/05/2008

Toronto, ON (May 15, 2008) The agencies of the Humanitarian Coalition note that conditions are rapidly deteriorating across southern Myanmar (formerly Burma) as government authorities now confirm 62,000 have died and the UN raises its estimates to 127,990 (from 100,000). It is reported that between 1.6 million and 2.5 million people have been "severely affected" by the cyclone.

Save the Children and CARE International continue their relief programs with over 1000 staff now working against time to prevent further deaths from dehydration and disease. As partners in the Humanitarian Coalition, CARE Canada, Save the Children Canada, Oxfam Canada and Oxfam Quebec are urging Canadians to give financial support to their relief efforts on the ground.

Save the Children Activities to date

• Save the Children has delivered aid to 115,000 people (33,000 children)
• Rice, dahl, oil, Water purification tablets, oral rehydration tablets, plastic sheeting for shelter and protection, kitchen equipment, medical supplies have been distributed through a network of trucks and boats
• Save the Children is escalating child protection activities as part of every aid distribution (child tracing, registration, feeding, shelter, safe play spaces)

CARE Activities to Date

• Rice has been distributed to shelters in Dagon township along with fuel for temple generators and water allocated to 10,000 people in 2 townships
• Distribution of toothpaste, toothbrushes, cloth, soap, towels and rice have been completed in Thaketa Township
• Two trucks containing 1,000 family kits and 5,000 mosquito nets delivered

OXFAM Activities to Date

• Oxfam's local partners have provided food, blankets and medical treatment to more than 68,000 people
• Relief packages distributed through partners include cooking oil, salt, mosquito nets, candles, flashlights and batteries.
• Oxfam has large stockpiles of supplies ready to send in - 10,000 family hygiene kits, 20,000 water buckets and 40,000 facemasks.

Save the Children has been working in Myanmar for 13 years, CARE for 14 years. These organizations have agreements with the government that allows receipt of goods and work within communities. Save the Children has 500 local staff and 35 offices around the country. CARE has 500 personnel in 120 villages in Myanmar.

Canadians can support the relief effort by donating to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION at 1-800-464-9154 or http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca.

Media Contact: Sue Rooks, Save the Children Canada, Media Relations, The Humanitarian Coalition, , Cell: 647-273-7134

Joint Statement on Myanmar Disaster

13/05/2008

(Ottawa, ON, May 13) Members of the Canadian media. I am Kevin McCort, President and CEO of CARE Canada. I have with me here in the room Anthony Scoggins of Oxfam Canada and joining us by phone are Marquis Giguere of Oxfam Quebec and Nadine Grant of Save the Children Canada. Together we are the Humanitarian Coalition - aid agencies working together to more effectively and efficiently raise funds in order to respond to emergencies like the one we are seeing now in Myanmar.

I think you are all aware by now of what has happened in the country of Myanmar following the onslaught of Cyclone Nargis on Saturday, May 3. The devastation there has been terrible. Our field teams are reporting finding villages that used to house 400 people, where now only three are left alive. Towns of 10,000 with only 500 survivors. The survivors are huddling in schools and pagodas and temporary camps while the bodies of their dead family members continue to lie unburied in the flooded streets. In the days to come many of those who survived the storm will die of disease and starvation if they do not get aid. I think all Canadians are aware of these facts. What Canadians are not aware of is that relief operations are already underway in Myanmar. The picture painted by the media to date, which has focused on the difficulties bringing supplies and personnel into Myanmar from outside the country, has led Canadians to believe there is no capacity yet to help the people of Myanmar. Canadians are reluctant to give their financial support because they do not think their money can make a difference yet. We are here today to challenge that understanding. The four organizations with us here today alone represent over one thousand aid workers who are even now saving lives in Myanmar. Right now Save the Children and CARE are distributing food, finding sources of clean water, and establishing temporary camps for those who lost their homes in the storm. They are able to acquire many necessary supplies within Myanmar, but to do that they need financial support. So we are here today to appeal to Canadians: please keep giving to support the relief work in Myanmar. Your dollars do count now, and they will get to those who need them. Our organizations are able to purchase supplies and transport in Myanmar through our local staff and systems. We can guarantee that we will spend donations responsibly now and in the long-term. We also ask for the support of the Government of Canada. Humanitarian Coalition members have over 27 years of combined experience working in Myanmar. We know the country, we know the people, we know the government. We have the capacity to deliver aid effectively and efficiently, to reach those with the greatest need. So we are calling on the government to also invest in the capacity of NGOs who are best suited to deliver humanitarian aid. At this time I would like to acknowledge that the world is also now seeing a humanitarian crisis unfolding in China following the earthquake there. While the world does need to offer any assistance that China should need, we cannot let Myanmar cease to be a priority, to become a forgotten tragedy, simply because there is currently more media footage available from China. The scale of the disaster in Myanmar is such that it must remain our top priority. With that I would be pleased to open the floor. We are able to take any of your questions on what is happening right now in Myanmar, what our organizations are currently doing, and how Canadians can help. Kevin McCort President and CEO CARE Canada - 30 - Media Contact: Kieran Green, CARE Canada, Media Relations, The Humanitarian Coalition, , Cell: 613.799.7562

Update on Humanitarian Coalition relief work in Myanmar

09/05/2008

Survival kits, and to aid to 72,000 people are amoung the most recent events through organizations to touch Myanmar.

CARE Activities to Date Survival kits for 50,000 people are being assembled in Thailand and are expected to be delivered next week. In one situation assessment in Thaketa Township, CARE found more than 24,000 people were affected with 3,000 people living in 7 temporary camps CARE has packaged 6,250 kilograms of rice and first aid kits for distribution throughout the township of Thaketa. CARE has helped establish camps for displaced persons, with emphasis being placed upon the registration of families at the camps. CARE is conducting assessments in Pathien in the Irrawaddy Delta. As many as 250,000 cyclone survivors in this area are expected to need urgent relief. Save the Children Activities to date Save the Children has delivered aid to 72,000 people (24,000 children) to date Save the Children will reach a further 42,000 people in the next 4 days 50 metric tonnes of rice have been purchased locally Water, oral rehydration tablets, and other relief items are also being distributed Save the Children has initiated child protection activities for children living in shelters Save the Children has been working in Myanmar for 13 years, CARE for 14 years. These organizations have agreements with the government that allows receipt of goods and work within communities. Save the Children has 500 local staff and 35 offices around the country. CARE has 500 personnel in 120 villages in Myanmar. Canadians can support the work of Save the Children and CARE by donating to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION by calling 1-800-464-9154, logging onto http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca, or by mailing donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 7023,  Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0. - 30 - Media Contact: Sue Rooks, Save the Children Canada, Media Relations, The Humanitarian Coalition, , Cell: 647-273-7134

Canadian Aid Agencies on the Ground in Myanmar (Burma)

08/05/2008

Toronto, ON (May 8, 2008) - Since Cyclone Nargis struck Myanmar (formerly Burma) last Saturday, international agencies Save the Children and CARE have had personnel on the ground evaluating the situation and beginning relief efforts. As partners in the Humanitarian Coalition CARE Canada and Save the Children Canada, along with Oxfam Canada and Oxfam Quebec, are delivering Canadian donations through their international networks to support their workers on the ground in Myanmar.

Assessment teams are reporting devastation across thousands of square kilometres, and an urgent need to supply clean water, food, and shelter materials for 2-3 million people left homeless. Save the Children has delivered immediate relief supplies to 50,000 children and their families to date and are working against time to provide supplies and rescue services in outlying areas. The agency is co-leading planning to address education infrastructure for children, as early estimates have found 3,193 primary schools destroyed affecting 500,000 children. CARE distributed water supplies yesterday to approximately 10,000 people taking shelter in Pagodas and schools in Myanmar's South Dagon and Thaketa townships. This included buying bottles of water, cleaning wells at the schools and pagodas, and providing water purification tablets and water storage units. Critical needs are plastic sheeting, water purification tablets, cooking sets, mosquito nets, emergency health kits and food. Canadians can support the work of Save the Children and CARE by donating to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION by calling 1-800-464-9154, logging onto http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca, or by mailing donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 7023,  Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0. - 30 - For background on the mission and current programs run by the four agencies, please visit http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca The four agencies have spokespeople (French and English-speaking) available for interviews on the emergency response. Media Contact: Sue Rooks, Save the Children Canada, Media Relations, The Humanitarian Coalition, , Cell: 647-273-7134

Cyclone Nargis devastates Myanmar

06/05/2008

THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION calls for donations as hundreds of thousands affected Ottawa, ON (May 6, 2008) - Canadian aid agencies, under the banner of the Humanitarian Coalition, are urging Canadians to support their emergency relief efforts in Myanmar after the devastation caused by Cyclone Nargis. Recent reports suggest the death toll will exceed 25,000 while hundreds of thousands of people have been made homeless due to the mass devastation.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, comprised of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, are working together to address the needs of the thousands of people displaced by the cyclone. "Access to Myanmar's southeastern delta is extremely limited" said David Morley, President and CEO of Save the Children Canada. He continued "However we do know that the immediate needs of the people must be addressed and we are doing all that we can to access those affected by this horrific situation." There is an urgent need for food, shelter, safe water, medicine, clothing and blankets. "We urgently call on Canadians to help in these most critical hours of the emergency. Our Coalition agencies have the expertise and capacity in Myanmar to bring help rapidly to the cyclone survivors" said CARE Canada's President and CEO Kevin McCort. Four of Canada's leading relief organizations are coordinating a fundraising appeal to respond to the survivors in Myanmar. Through a single toll-free number, Canadian donations will be allocated where they are needed most. - 30 - Canadians are asked to donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION by calling 1-800-464-9154, logging onto http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca, or by mailing donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 7023,  Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0. For background on the mission and current programs run by the four agencies, please visit http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca The four agencies have spokespeople (French and English-speaking) available for interviews on the emergency response. Media Contact: Sue Rooks, Save the Children Canada, Media Relations, The Humanitarian Coalition, , Cell: 647-273-7134

Flooding in Southern Africa

21/02/2008

Tropical Storm Ivan threatens more damage for millions affected. Ottawa, ON (February 21, 2008) - Canadian aid agencies, under the banner of the Humanitarian Coalition, are urging Canadians to help prevent a humanitarian disaster. The situation for flood survivors across Mozambique is expected to worsen as Tropical Storm Ivan makes landfall today and brings more rain to this already vulnerable region.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, comprised of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, are working together to address the needs of the thousands of people already displaced by the floods. "The government and the national and international agencies are attending the most urgent needs of the displaced population, mainly food, shelter, clean water and sanitation facilities, such as latrines", said Chris McIvor, Save the Children's Country Director in Mozambique. He continued, "there have been over 4000 case of cholera reported so far and we fear that malaria rates will be also the rise. We must continue distributing mosquito nets and offering educational opportunities in the camps about proper hygiene. In order to do this, we need the support of generous Canadians." According to official figures currently over 100,000 people living in resettlement centers, but this is likely to increase significantly if flood waters rise due to Tropical Storm Ivan. There continues to be an urgent need for food, shelter, safe water and to ensure hygienic conditions in the resettlement centers. "We applaud the local governments that have prevented what could have been a major catastrophe, however, the fact remains that the survival needs are still great. The extent of the flooding will slow the planting of new crops," said Pierre Véronneau, CEO of Oxfam-Québec. "We urge Canadians to help provide the funds to support children and their families for at least one year across the region." The Canadian government has provided $249,508 to Oxfam for water, sanitation, hygiene kits and public health promotion for approximately 8,000 people. Four of Canada's leading relief organizations will continue to coordinate a fundraising appeal to respond to the flooding in Southern Africa, which has already affected close to 500,000 people. Through a single toll-free number, Canadian donations will be allocated where they are needed most. - 30 - Canadians are asked to donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION by calling 1-800-464-9154, logging onto http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca, or by mailing donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 7023,  Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0. For background on the mission and current programs run by the four agencies, please visit http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca The four agencies have spokespeople (French and English-speaking) available for interviews on the emergency response. Media Contact: Alexandra Lopoukhine, Media Relations, The Humanitarian Coalition, Tel: 613.237.5236 ext. 222, Cell: 613.762.9727,

Kenyan humanitarian crisis not over, agencies warn

08/02/2008

THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION welcomes possible resolution, but needs remain.Toronto, ON (February 8, 2008) - While there are hopeful indications of a possible resolution to the recent conflict in Kenya, four of Canada's leading relief organizations are warning that the effects of the violence and displacement will continue as Kenyans work to rebuild their lives.

The Humanitarian Coalition, comprised of CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec and Save the Children Canada, applaud peace efforts in the nation, but warn that food shortages will continue. Families without livelihood support have been forced to consume their seeds intended for planting. The crisis in Kenya has meant that hundreds of thousands of hectares of farms in the fertile Rift Valley will not be harvested, producing serious food shortages for Kenyans who are living precariously in temporary camps and shelters. It is estimated that more than 20 per cent of the maize crop, a staple for children and adults, has been left behind as families fled from their farms. Making matters worse, farmers, who must plant fields in the next two weeks to ensure a harvest to provide food in the future, are facing serious shortages of seed. The disruption of harvesting and planting cycles will require significant donor support for food and livelihood programs, as a shortfall of corn production appears across the country and food prices rise out of reach of the poor. "Within days of the outbreak of violence, the cost of maize meal in Nairobi slums had increased by 50 per cent and in Kisumu slums up to 300 per cent," said CARE International's Mohammed Qazilbash. Four of Canada's leading relief organizations will continue to coordinate a fundraising appeal to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Kenya, which has already affected more than 500,000 people. Through a single toll-free number, Canadian donations will be allocated where they are needed most. The four agencies have spokespeople available in Kenya and in Canada for interviews on the emergency response. Photos from Kenya are also available. - 30 - Canadians are asked to donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION by calling 1-800-464-9154, logging onto http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca, or by mailing donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 7023,  Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0. For background on the mission and current programs run by the four agencies, please visit http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca Media Contact: Media Contact: Andrea Lanthier-Seymour, Media Relations Tel: 613.228.5678, Cell: 613.799.7562,

CRISIS IN KENYA

31/01/2008

January 31, 2008 – Four of Canada's leading relief organizations are launching an appeal today to respond to the humanitarian crisis in Kenya, which has already affected more than 500,000 people.

CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, and Save the Children Canada are appealing to Canadians to support their emergency relief efforts in the East African nation through a single mechanism called THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION (http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca). "We are speaking in one voice. We are calling on Canadians to help the tens of thousands of innocent families affected by the crisis in Kenya," said Robert Fox, of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and Executive Director of Oxfam Canada. "These are families who want the instability to stop. In many communities, we are supporting them in their efforts to make peace, but more urgently, we must support them with food, clothing and shelter." While 500,000 are affected, it is estimated that instability has displaced 250,000 people. Families are now living in make-shift camps in parks, community buildings, churches, schools and with family members. Their displacement means that children are away from schools, and parents are unable to work to support their families. Humanitarian Coalition members have independently worked on the ground since the initial days of the crisis. Efforts have focused on the provision of life saving necessities, such as water and shelter and the protection of women and children, as well as on solutions to help people whose livelihoods have been put at risk. Community reconciliation and peace building initiatives are also being undertaken to help prevent attacks and resolve conflicts at the community level. With the crisis continuing, the Humanitarian Coalition has agreed that a united effort in Canada is the best way to move forward. Through a single toll-free number, Canadian donations will be allocated where they are needed most. "We must act now to help prevent long-term problems," said Kevin McCort, of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and interim CEO of CARE Canada. "Members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION will focus on immediate life-saving measures, but we will also be working with communities to ensure they can maintain independence and self-sufficiency. This includes giving seeds to farmers to make sure the next harvest is a success, and making sure children can go to school." HUMANITARIAN COALITION members have staff on the ground who are available for interviews, as well as a member who has recently returned from the emergency response. This is the first time members of the Humanitarian Coalition have launched two concurrent appeals in its three-year history. The Humanitarian Coalition launched an appeal on January 18th for the Southern African floods, which are affecting more than 250,000 people. Efforts on the floods will continue throughout the Kenyan appeal. Together, the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have already raised nearly $210,000. But much more is still needed. With a combined presence in 83 countries the coordinated marketing and fundraising efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION have proven in past emergencies to be both cost-effective and to have a greater impact in responding to emergencies. As in other emergencies, the Coalition has established one call centre for accepting donations, one national toll-free phone number, and a joint website for online donations - in order to make donating easy for Canadians. Canadians are asked to donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION by calling 1-800-464-9154, logging onto http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca website, or by mailing donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 7023,  Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0. - 30 - Note to Editors: The Southern Africa floods and the Crisis in Kenya appeals are the 3rd and 4th Coalition initiatives for the four agencies. Previous campaigns include the Joint Earthquake Appeal, which responded to the earthquake in South Asia in 2005, and the HUMANITARIAN COALITION appeal in response to the crisis in the Middle East in 2006. For background on the missions and current relief programs run by the four agencies, please visit http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca. For more information: Andrea Lanthier-Seymour, Media Relations (CARE Canada), HUMANITARIAN COALITION, Tel: 613.228.5678, Cell: 613.799.7562 Alexandra Lopoukhine Media relations (Oxfam Canada), Tel: 613.237.5236 x222 Cell: 613.850.9723 Justine Lesage, Media relations (Oxfam-Québec & French Lead), Tel: 1.514.382.7922 Ext. 237 Cell: 514.513.0013 Sue Rooks, Media relations (Save the Children Canada), Tel: 416.221.5501 Ext. 305 Cell: 647.273.7134

HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

25/01/2008

: "Entire Region Threatened by Rising Floods" CANADA'S LEADING RELIEF AGENCIES PARTNER TO RESPOND TO THE EMERGENCY OF FLOODS IN SOUTHERN AFRICA Jan 25, 2008 – Four of Canada's largest relief agencies are joining together to raise funds for the hundreds of thousands of people affected by massive flooding that is extending across much of Southern Africa. Without a significant and rapid investment of aid, survivors face the threat of death from water-borne disease and malnutrition, and families living in temporary camps are unable to protect their livelihoods.

For weeks, the situation has grown worse as heavy rain continues to fall over Zambia, southern Malawi and northern Mozambique, engorging rivers in these countries that drain into the Zambezi river, which flows through central Mozambique. The geographical area affected continues to grow. The number of people affected in the region continues to rise. Over 100,000 people are known to have been displaced from their homes. This includes 78,000 people in Mozambique, more than 10,000 in Zimbabwe, and 16,650 in Zambia, according to government and partner assessments. Hundreds of thousands more have also been affected, mainly through the likely loss of their crops. In Mozambique alone an additional 170,000 are expected to need assistance for covering their basic needs. CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, and Save the Children Canada are appealing to Canadians to support these agencies' emergency relief efforts through a single mechanism called THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION (http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca). The partners are issuing a joint appeal for donations to help the agencies deliver aid to help some of the more than 100,000 people displaced, and thousands more affected, by the floods across Southern Africa. Through a single toll-free number, Canadian donations will be allocated to where they will be most effective. "As flood levels continue to rise, our main concern is the lack of clean water, food and shelter," Pierre Veronneau, of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and Executive Director of Oxfam-Québec. "As well, the threat of diarrhea, malaria and cholera needs to be addressed immediately." Coalition members have ongoing long-term development programs in the four countries most affected by the flooding. The emergency response will be focused on identifying and meeting the needs of the most vulnerable, which include infants and small children, and the elderly. Emergency programs will typically initially include the delivery of safe drinking water, food, shelter materials, medical assistance, and hygiene kits; and after the floodwaters recede, assistance with rebuilding homes and community structures such as schools. "The needs are great, but we are confident that by working together, we can help meet the needs of survivors of this disaster," said David Morley, of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION and President and CEO of Save the Children Canada. "We are asking Canadians to support these efforts generously." With a combined presence in 83 countries the coordinated marketing and fundraising efforts by the members of the HUMANITARIAN COALITION has proven in past emergencies to be both cost-effective and to have a greater impact in responding to emergencies. As in other emergencies, the Coalition has established one call centre for accepting donations, one national toll-free phone number, and a joint website for online donations - in order to make donating easy for Canadians. Public service announcements and web communications are coordinated to provide the most up-to-date and accurate information available on the needs in the emergency, to Canadians. Canadians are asked to donate to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION by calling 1-800-464-9154, logging onto http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca website, or by mailing donations to THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, PO Box 7023,  Ottawa, ON, K1L 5A0. -30- Note to Editors: This is the 3rd Coalition initiative for the four agencies. Previous campaigns include the Joint Earthquake Appeal, which responded to the earthquake in South Asia in 2005, and the HUMANITARIAN COALITION appeal in response to the crisis in the Middle East in 2006. For background on the mission and current programmes run by the four agencies, please visit http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca. For more information: Andrea Lanthier-Seymour, Media Relations (CARE Canada), HUMANITARIAN COALITION, Tel: 613.228.5678, Cell: 613.799.7562 Alexandra Lopoukhine Media relations (Oxfam Canada), Tel: 613.237.5236 x222 Cell: 613.850.9723 (cell) Justine Lesage, Media relations (Oxfam-Québec & French Lead), Tel: 1.514.382.7922 Ext. 237 Cell: 514.513.0013 Carol Tisshaw, Media relations (Save the Children Canada), Tel: 416.221.5501 Ext. 305 Cell: 647.273.7134

HUMANITARIAN CRISIS IN THE MIDDLE EAST

28/07/2006

CANADIAN AID AGENCIES CALL FOR SAFE PASSAGE IN MIDDLE EAST July 28, 2006 – Prime Minister Stephen Harper must demand the immediate establishment of humanitarian corridors and must promote the security of relief workers to ensure the delivery of desperately needed aid in the Middle East, four of Canada’s leading aid organizations said today.

The HUMANITARIAN COALITION, a partnering of CARE Canada, Oxfam-Québec, Oxfam Canada and Save the Children Canada, is asking Canada to help prevent civilian suffering on all sides of the Middle Eastern conflict by advocating a safe and continuous passage for humanitarian supplies. Food, water and medical supplies must not only be allowed to reach the ports, they must also be permitted to reach vulnerable communities by land or by air. "We are facing a humanitarian crisis that is getting worse every day," said Kevin McCort, Senior Vice-President of CARE Canada. "Hundreds of thousands of people need food, water and other basic supplies, but aid groups are struggling to reach the most vulnerable because of roads are impassable and NGO staff security cannot be guaranteed." "There have been promises that humanitarian corridors will be established, but we need immediate action and assurance," said Michel Verret, Acting Executive Director, Oxfam-Québec. "Canada must insist on a safe passage for humanitarian supplies and aid workers in the Middle East." THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION partners are actively working in Lebanon, West Bank/Gaza, Israel, Syria and Jordan, but are experiencing challenges distributing aid in many regions because of destroyed roads and ongoing attacks. While all staff members of the organizations are reported to be safe, several projects in West Bank Gaza, including 50 CARE supported greenhouses and one of Save the Children’s playgrounds, have been severely damaged or destroyed in attacks. Where access is possible, the members are distributing a variety of emergency supplies, including food, water, shelter materials, blankets and diapers. While access has been possible in Gaza, NGOs are being overwhelmed by a growing demand for aid from the 1.4 million people who are trapped and are unable to flee the hostilities. In Lebanon, where access is difficult, approximately 600,000 people have been forced from their homes due to violence. "Relief workers must be allowed to enter in safety to help civilians who have been caught up in the violence," said Robert Fox, Executive Director of Oxfam Canada. "The more international pressure placed on the conflicting parties, the sooner we will see action." "The suffering will increase if these conditions continue much longer," said Colleen Malone, Program Manager of Child Protection in Emergencies at Save the Children Canada. "A humanitarian corridor is necessary to bring life-saving supplies to the families and the children who are facing dire conditions across the entire region." The conflict is also forcing many people to flee into bordering countries. Approximately 300,000 refugees are seeking shelter in Syria. In West Bank/Gaza, the influx of refugees is creating immense pressure on existing refugee camps, forcing them to house up to 16 people in one room. Members of THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION are continuing relief work on the ground and are conducting assessments throughout the region to determine growing needs. ABOUT THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION The Humanitarian Coalition is a partnering among CARE Canada, Oxfam Canada, Oxfam-Québec, and Save the Children Canada to create a more efficient and effective way of providing help to the Middle East. For more information on THE HUMANITARIAN COALITION, or to make a donation, log onto http://www.humanitariancoalition.ca To arrange media interviews, please contact: Carol Tisshaw Media relations Save the Children Canada Tel: 416.221.5501 Ext. 305 Cell: 416-346-1310 Robert Fox Executive Director Oxfam Canada Tel: 613 237 5236 Ext. 221 Marie Devers Media relations Oxfam-Québec Tel:1.514.382.7922 Ext. 237 Cell: 514.513.0013 Andrea Lanthier-Seymour Media relations CARE Canada Tel: 613.228.5678 Cell: 613.799.7562

Contact profile

Subscribe to mailing list or update your contact profile.

Media Contacts:

CARE Canada
Communications:
Alison Frehlich
Tel: 613.799.7562
Web site: care.ca

Oxfam Canada
Media Officer:
Juliet O’Neill
Cell:613-240-3047
Web site: oxfam.ca

Oxfam-Québec
Media Relations:
Justine Lesage
Tél: 514.382.7922 poste 237
Céll : 514.513.0013
Web site: oxfam.qc.ca

Plan Canada
Media and Public Relations Manager:
Abigail Brown
Tel: 416.920.1654 ext.277
Web site: plancanada.ca

Save the Children
Communications Manager:
Cicely McWilliam
Tel: 1-800-668-5036 Ext. 300
Cell: (647) 291-1683
Web site: savethechildren.ca

Appeal

See where we work

Follow Us

FAQ | Contact | Links| Privacy Policy | Français
The Humanitarian Coalition - Charitable Registration Number: 83159 0666 RR0001

The Humanitarian Coalition - Developed by Justin Girard