Welcome Back!

You have Gifts for Good in your basket.

Welcome Back!

Last time you were here, you were looking to help vulnerable children and families. Your support can save and change lives.

Earlier this month, I led ChildFund’s delegation to the United Nations World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction in Sendai, Japan.

I was lucky enough to make a presentation on the “Ignite!” stage at the conference, which you can watch below. It’s a description of a project carried out by ChildFund, with the support of the Australian Government, that helped youth engage in disaster risk reduction (DRR) in the Philippines. As you’ll see, their efforts, and leadership, helped save lives and reduce damage when Typhoon Haiyan struck.

According to the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child, children and youth have the right to participate in matters that concern them. So involving kids in DRR activities, as leaders (within national frameworks, as we did in the Philippines, and keeping their safety uppermost in our work) is one way of realising their rights. So it’s a must.

But also, youth-led DRR activities worked! As you will hear in the presentation, when Haiyan hit the Philippines with terrible force in November of 2013, just 18 months after the project ended, communities were much better prepared.

Among commitments made by the world community in Sendai, there are three references to the participation of children and youth:

  • In paragraph 7 – “There has to be a broader and a more people-centred preventative approach to disaster risk.  … governments should engage with relevant stakeholders, including women, children and youth… in the design and implementation of policies, plans and standards.”
  • In paragraph 19 (d) – “Disaster risk reduction requires an all-of-society engagement and partnership.  … the promotion of women and youth leadership…”
  • In paragraph 36 (a) (ii) – “Children and youth are agents of change and should be given the space and modalities to contribute to disaster risk reduction…”

Youth-led DRR: it’s their right, it builds their resilience, it makes DRR efforts stronger, and the world community is now committed.

Let’s make it happen.

Read more from Mark on this topic here.

Last week the ChildFund PNG team held a Children’s Day, which saw children from three villages come along to the local primary school for a day of games, activities and health checks. In PNG, we hold one Children’s Day per year in each community we work with – it just keeps getting bigger and better!

On this day, we had a very successful immunisation and health camp. Children aged from just a few months to five or six years came with their mothers and other caregivers in one of our best turnouts yet.

We immunised them, we measured their weight and height, and all their health records were updated. We do already carry out immunisation patrols in this area but because three villages were coming together for this event, it was a great opportunity to do something on a bigger scale.

We were able to purchase over 3,000 books, which we are distributing in 21 schools.

Two sets of solar panels and lights were handed over to the local aid post, along with a steriliser and solar panel and light for the labour ward at the district health centre. We also distributed 400 anti-malaria bed nets to the communities in the three villages.

At night, we had an awareness quiz involving five teams of children. They had to answer questions relating to health, water and sanitation, education, HIV and AIDS. It was a great way to raise awareness about these issues in a fun way and was very much appreciated by the whole community.