tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43709280246509210182024-03-14T03:39:05.198-07:00Pacific Island CountriesUNICEF promotes the rights and well being of every child, in everything we do. Together with our partners, we work to translate that commitment into practical action, especially for the most disadvantaged children. Andy Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12319516391207441053noreply@blogger.comBlogger137125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-59701797386544487752016-03-02T23:23:00.000-08:002016-03-10T23:31:25.047-08:00School’s out: Cyclone Winston impacts education<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig6OXDHcUUz5AKCNfjWngGsDDcLaV5KpFs11CY6WbtpD0rUB4fXIAvpWflVoXi_6tYHbSXbJI4uxNCPJcWFvQKlhCO4wUW237ScomF9STdXVyabrMK3ktftbRBhR0d6hO1056Tqeu78ig/s1600/Vlad_Sokhin_Navitilievu_03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig6OXDHcUUz5AKCNfjWngGsDDcLaV5KpFs11CY6WbtpD0rUB4fXIAvpWflVoXi_6tYHbSXbJI4uxNCPJcWFvQKlhCO4wUW237ScomF9STdXVyabrMK3ktftbRBhR0d6hO1056Tqeu78ig/s400/Vlad_Sokhin_Navitilievu_03.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adi Dokoni, kindergarten teacher from Navitilevu village, with her daughters<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i>By Cifora Monier</i><br />
<br />
Adi Dokoni, a 42 year old mother of three and a kindergarten teacher in Navitilevu village, Fiji, tells her children to be careful while they run around the debris left behind by Cyclone Winston. “Everything is damaged; our house and our crops,” she says watching her children move away from the sharp corrugated metal that lays on the ground broken and twisted by the storm.<br />
<br />
“There is no school for the time being and we still have to rebuild our houses,” says Adi. “We don’t know how long it will take us. We don’t have money because the food we’d usually sell from our crops has been destroyed. That was our only way of getting money.”<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Fiji’s Ministry of Education has reported that at least 240 schools have been damaged or destroyed. Many schools are also being used as temporary evacuation centres, sheltering families who have lost their homes. This means many of 120,000 are being left without an education.<br />
<br />
For many of the villagers in Navitilevu, the school that night became their last refuge. For them, it is difficult to imagine a more distressing night than when Cyclone Winston flattened everything before it.<br />
<br />
“The winds started around 3pm,” says Adi as she looks at the wreckage around her. “Most of us who live in bamboo houses decided to hide in stronger houses with neighbours. But the wind was getting stronger and stronger. At this point we thought it was better to go to our school where I teach.”<br />
<br />
Walking in the dark through torrential rains and storm winds, the villagers arrived to see the school half destroyed. “When we got to the school it was horrible, three out of our five classrooms were no longer there, they had blown away,” says Adi. “We were about sixty plus people in the two rooms.”<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5iwwqVyhbTa8Tn5qlRMJ02PoQxfKuXD-NqhJ1UEebpzmqiqhR6ptOlvI9CWy6CpTrOwtk4GjoHassPXZ2Z1OZ4Fz-NV35R4mn0QZlSpJk8YgnC_DGxbgldn9hnLFKSqTZa2EbA_EwszQ/s1600/Vlad_Sokhin_Navitilievu_04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5iwwqVyhbTa8Tn5qlRMJ02PoQxfKuXD-NqhJ1UEebpzmqiqhR6ptOlvI9CWy6CpTrOwtk4GjoHassPXZ2Z1OZ4Fz-NV35R4mn0QZlSpJk8YgnC_DGxbgldn9hnLFKSqTZa2EbA_EwszQ/s400/Vlad_Sokhin_Navitilievu_04.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">85-year-old Siteri, the oldest person in the village holding Salomi, the youngest<br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">© </span>UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
At this point Adi’s voice breaks. It’s an ordeal that has clearly left a scar on her and her community. While the cyclone was being felt by everyone that night sheltering in the classrooms – from the 3 week old baby to an 85 year old great grandmother – the physical and mental scars will be felt for a long time to come.<br />
<br />
UNICEF has already supplied 60 temporary classrooms to most-affected schools – and many more are on the way. Each UNICEF temporary classroom kit includes a large tent and educational supplies sufficient for 40 students and teachers.<br />
<br />
They allow children and teachers to quickly return to school, to routine and a sense of normality in even the toughest of times. Temporary classrooms also help to keep children safe during the day, when parents and caregivers are focusing on recovery efforts and livelihoods.<br />
<br />
In addition to supporting affected children to return to school, UNICEF is working closely with the Government of Fiji and development partners to ensure that affected children and their families have access to clean, safe drinking water, sanitation, health and protection.<br />
<br />
“Our wish is for the government and aid agencies to help us rebuild,” says Adi. “But most important is for our kids to start school as soon as possible. We also need school supplies as ours have now been damaged and destroyed.”<br />
<br />
<b>Donate online</b><br />
• <a href="http://www.unicef.org.au/appeals/fiji-children-s-emergency-appeal" target="_blank">Australia</a><br />
• <a href="https://www.unicef.org.nz/fiji" target="_blank">New Zealand</a>Andy Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12319516391207441053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-36873885196612640672016-02-26T00:16:00.000-08:002016-03-10T23:31:57.556-08:00Fiji after Cyclone Winston: “I told my family to leave everything”<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4gsxuTviDHmz4R_mhSZR4h13xYG_KuF9jz96cAWg7TVpSx4ZDqeTAN4xsFiAXcO9IyQxW1lWuc8rK6mGzvxAU2KsXQbmOUKb66WjhupBn3Cz93U6RVt0KC8eQcTWp5n001ssaw5ABlsU/s1600/TCWisnton_25-Feb_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4gsxuTviDHmz4R_mhSZR4h13xYG_KuF9jz96cAWg7TVpSx4ZDqeTAN4xsFiAXcO9IyQxW1lWuc8rK6mGzvxAU2KsXQbmOUKb66WjhupBn3Cz93U6RVt0KC8eQcTWp5n001ssaw5ABlsU/s400/TCWisnton_25-Feb_01.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tiloko, his wife Leba and their children<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i>By Neisau Tuidraki, UNICEF Pacific</i><br />
<br />
In Yaqeta village, Yasawa Islands, 39-year-old Leba sits on a mat in the place where her family house stood, before it was destroyed by Tropical Cyclone Winston. She is joined by her husband Tiloko and their five children Adi, Makereta, Emosi, Waisake and Vasemasa, aged from 16 to just one.<br />
<br />
“On the night of the cyclone we all stayed at home,” Leba says. “The wind got stronger and stronger, and then the breadfruit tree fell on top of our house and destroyed it.”<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Luckily the family managed to escape, and no one was hurt. “We ran to my uncle’s house, but it was destroyed soon after that,” Leba continues. “So we ran again to the next house, where we finally got to safety.”<br />
<br />
Leba’s family lost all their food in the cyclone. They received food rations in the village hall, but even that is running out. Her daughter Adi, 13, sits beside her mother listening, and quietly adds her own experience of the night.<br />
<br />
“I was with my family in a house,” Adi says. “Then I saw our house starting to collapse. I grabbed my brother Waisake and we ran. I was so scared. We ran from house to house three times. Now I am heartbroken to see the home where I was born and raised in pieces.”<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTdJPoEHK1qktqyepwI2ctzeNG8EC3WDuf2MpCTXhkpvA_tg5SzTP2rrTrFgDr16ukBogVBjWnIqDyg4c9CYbV0ux84gYfJLAsfgura8jmS4BbvsBg4CbPYxSkHVDJD_29N_jLY0uswiQ/s1600/TCWisnton_25-Feb_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTdJPoEHK1qktqyepwI2ctzeNG8EC3WDuf2MpCTXhkpvA_tg5SzTP2rrTrFgDr16ukBogVBjWnIqDyg4c9CYbV0ux84gYfJLAsfgura8jmS4BbvsBg4CbPYxSkHVDJD_29N_jLY0uswiQ/s400/TCWisnton_25-Feb_02.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Adi, 13, and her 4-year-old brother Waisake<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
When UNICEF landed on Yaqeta, the idyllic island that was once lush with vegetation had been stripped bare by Cyclone Winston. A group of men were sitting around a large fish, sharing a meal for lunch. All the children had gathered on the veranda of a house that survived.<br />
<br />
Most of the people in Yaqeta village went to sleep in their homes the night cyclone Winston was set to hit Fiji. Village Headman Moapi Seuseu said they knew there was a cyclone coming, but they didn’t know when it was going to hit them.<br />
<br />
“We usually get a warning from the radio, but Saturday the radio was broken,” he says. “So we all went to sleep inside our houses. The mobile network was down too. These are the two information sources we rely on.”<br />
<br />
“Food and water is what we need now, because our farms are gone,” Moapi adds.<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8YF-L3_BzNKwzpKX6n_TyNR4JSA5zclbJ-oDUgpjuuCSbqZQqxDG2TrTLc4dFpLiMyR9iPJA0MRIk1s1AHKNYcewmoHRI68JrQzax24IQzm_hxdaCCakpwtMuP6VSGNDFWChstkM7nXo/s1600/TCWisnton_25-Feb_06.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8YF-L3_BzNKwzpKX6n_TyNR4JSA5zclbJ-oDUgpjuuCSbqZQqxDG2TrTLc4dFpLiMyR9iPJA0MRIk1s1AHKNYcewmoHRI68JrQzax24IQzm_hxdaCCakpwtMuP6VSGNDFWChstkM7nXo/s400/TCWisnton_25-Feb_06.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vasemaca and Adi in their damaged classroom at Yaqeta District Boarding School<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Meanwhile, in Navuavua village, Ra Province, 12-year-old Adi Laite is at home with her family. Her mother washes their muddied clothes outside in the light rain and her father clears debris with a heavily-bandaged hand. Last Saturday afternoon, the winds of Cyclone Winston swept Navuavua village in Ra, destroying 15 homes.<br />
<br />
“I was really scared,” Adi Laite says. “It started raining and the winds got stronger. The house started to flood and the leaves started flying into the house”<br />
<br />
The family watched in horror as their neighbour’s house was torn apart by the strong winds. Their own home was also being destroyed, first the kitchen, then the shower. That’s when her father Lasaro Vota knew he had to move his children fast. “I told my family to leave everything – the TV, radio, everything don’t worry about it and go,“ he says.<br />
<br />
Battling against the ferocious winds, Lasaro took the children to a neighbour’s house one-by-one. He pauses and points to the bandage on his hand and says “I got this taking my third child to safety, I lifted my hand to protect my face from a piece of flying tin roofing”.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm3457QkLRMISKW_7pK6FZmyMze92ebe6mBVdsONLfH9Aq-Gsi4bjsUXxf6v5ghom_ptM6SSGE5XQ2yMqd9TK9zUS-ZFxD8OEOzSe__pj0aDSGkO0kl65LJ1Z8KWuNyz5tbhGQmTKB0BY/s1600/UN011483_Med-Res.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm3457QkLRMISKW_7pK6FZmyMze92ebe6mBVdsONLfH9Aq-Gsi4bjsUXxf6v5ghom_ptM6SSGE5XQ2yMqd9TK9zUS-ZFxD8OEOzSe__pj0aDSGkO0kl65LJ1Z8KWuNyz5tbhGQmTKB0BY/s400/UN011483_Med-Res.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lasaro Vota, his wife and children clean the debris of their home<br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
As he went to get his fourth child, it was pitch black and the area had started to flood. Lasaro was walking blind and injured himself again, slicing his foot on another piece of tin roof that was in the muddy water. Despite his injuries, Lasaro managed to carry each of his five children through the strong gusts of wind to safety.<br />
<br />
After his family was secure, Lasaro ignored his own advice and made a final trek back to his home through the strong winds to salvage what he could. He realised his mistake when he couldn’t close the door to his home and the cyclone reached peak intensity. “I couldn’t move out of the door, the wind was so strong so I turned around, opened our deep freezer and took shelter in there” he says.<br />
<br />
Lasaro waited until 12am when the cyclone died down to leave the relative safety of the deep freezer and seek out his family who were thankfully safe at their neighbours.<br />
<br />
In the aftermath of the cyclone Lasaro is clearing the debris around his home. He ignores the bandage on his hand, saying “I’m just cleaning up as much as I can. We’re living on coconut water and loose breadfruit and doing what we can to survive.”<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcIwIGe21QUxjdo0nXIiPrrRE9_K6iCCW17Ab6CYPE2F05zwmObGafBswYDib89fyGGERHn5As9qQSBb_K8QaY7tWUHZNtYBW4Y0v_UTjlf9eOcJocnqPkJwgliVxBQJS65ZmtrsjUnwc/s1600/IMG_0292.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcIwIGe21QUxjdo0nXIiPrrRE9_K6iCCW17Ab6CYPE2F05zwmObGafBswYDib89fyGGERHn5As9qQSBb_K8QaY7tWUHZNtYBW4Y0v_UTjlf9eOcJocnqPkJwgliVxBQJS65ZmtrsjUnwc/s400/IMG_0292.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">UNICEF supplies being offloaded from a boat at Koro Island<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Hing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Families that have lost their homes and crops in the cyclone are extremely vulnerable, with their primary food source wiped out along with their homes. UNICEF Pacific is working in partnership with the Government of Fiji to respond to the urgent needs of affected children and communities. Within 36 hours of the cyclone hitting Fiji, UNICEF was distributing pre-positioned emergency supplies to those most in need.<br />
<br />
After a natural disaster, many people’s immediate reaction is to help by sending food, household supplies and clothing. However, it takes time to clear these items through customs, sort and then distribute them, meaning they reach families much later than anticipated or needed.<br />
<br />
It is much more effective to donate cash to UNICEF and other relief organisations. UNICEF offices in Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere have set up donation lines where you can send financial assistance. You can also donate online. Your assistance will fund the purchasing of supplies, as well as transport and distribution to affected communities.<br />
<br />
<b>Donate online</b><br />
• <a href="http://www.unicef.org.au/appeals/fiji-children-s-emergency-appeal" target="_blank">Australia</a><br />
• <a href="https://www.unicef.org.nz/fiji" target="_blank">New Zealand</a>Andy Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12319516391207441053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-60214703882824454942016-02-24T23:48:00.001-08:002016-02-25T18:55:42.025-08:00Families in Fiji pick up the pieces after Cyclone Winston<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitBeeo8OBKJCqCnicRkDOHjxw-a2cilLQhuvbzZbgnBrsXxXdJHj3mGVaK3YVuQY1D8curYQwopNEO8t1nftwxIbKveX1vlo2UH5oeVvx60v0YNvV6izwckZErN3IH5w6R6ThYGrbchDY/s1600/Unicef_TCWisnton_07.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitBeeo8OBKJCqCnicRkDOHjxw-a2cilLQhuvbzZbgnBrsXxXdJHj3mGVaK3YVuQY1D8curYQwopNEO8t1nftwxIbKveX1vlo2UH5oeVvx60v0YNvV6izwckZErN3IH5w6R6ThYGrbchDY/s400/Unicef_TCWisnton_07.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tuvosa, 3, with his mother Kalisi, in their ruined home<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Natural disasters like Cyclone Winston in Fiji have the biggest impact on children, who are among the most vulnerable members of society. This was certainly the case for 3-year-old Tuvosa (pictured above) when the cyclone tore his family's house apart, on Viti Levu island. "We lost everything," his mother Kalisi says. "We don't have a house, and there is no food. During the cyclone me, mum and Tuvosa were hiding under the bed. My husband was holding the wall."<br />
<br />
"When my soon realised what had happened to our house, he cried," she continues. "Since the cyclone, he has not been the same. Every time he comes back home he cries. He barely talks to us. I think it has really affected him."<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguRlHoiQwVbVDl4KgSf5SX5AR6KVAhrja9VhfLEQgK8P30_R9NCl6Yb_nGa0NZjilsyZz74G72UkdTMt7zUlvHa0ZhERhT_Lm2kVjEN3yMhyTqOD1cSvpeO0lU9rUC04xRERIu2jvChY8/s1600/Unicef_TCWisnton_14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguRlHoiQwVbVDl4KgSf5SX5AR6KVAhrja9VhfLEQgK8P30_R9NCl6Yb_nGa0NZjilsyZz74G72UkdTMt7zUlvHa0ZhERhT_Lm2kVjEN3yMhyTqOD1cSvpeO0lU9rUC04xRERIu2jvChY8/s400/Unicef_TCWisnton_14.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eta and her son Alipate shelter at their local village school<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Eta, 31, sits with her son Alipate, 1, who is recovering from chicken pox. The family have taken shelter at their local village school, on Viti Levu island, which is being used as an evacuation centre. They survived Cyclone Winston by huddling together in the only standing bedroom, after the storm blew the rest of their house away. "We sat in the rain for hours until we could get to an evacuation centre," Eta says.<br />
<br />
School has been cancelled for one week across Fiji. Some 67 schools have been destroyed or severely damaged, while others are being used as evacuation centres. Over 22,600 people are in 246 evacuation centres, with many more staying with relatives or in other non-official displacement sites.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguR316ZwzAMlobpsiNAmzMkOvMOeKRxaSymPtss5bW2sx6ZrZ5Cr-Z3Sw-UXpFrW9dqQCVXbHl8NCJNl8QGwRJZVvvhxRyBemISYxsCeJatk6eAqEsy2pMKzDm_ruYpKbPR7IOVSilYeo/s1600/Unicef_TCWisnton_09.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguR316ZwzAMlobpsiNAmzMkOvMOeKRxaSymPtss5bW2sx6ZrZ5Cr-Z3Sw-UXpFrW9dqQCVXbHl8NCJNl8QGwRJZVvvhxRyBemISYxsCeJatk6eAqEsy2pMKzDm_ruYpKbPR7IOVSilYeo/s400/Unicef_TCWisnton_09.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Children swimming and playing in Rakiraki River<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In the north of Viti Levu, the largest island in Fiji, the once lush vegetation that covered the banks of Rakiraki River has gone. But that doesn't stop children and young people from nearby villages swimming and playing in the waters. Here, two boys have turned part of a cyclone-destroyed house into a makeshift raft.<br />
<br />
Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Winston was the strongest cyclone to ever hit Fiji. On landfall, it had some of the highest wind speeds recorded globally. It struck the two main islands of Fiji and numerous smaller islands. Around 40 per cent of the population of Fiji live within 50 kms of the eye of the storm.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibvbKWYwEuuOYlWMc5kM7b5OY98mAJs9jrRf31gN8M3c2uhQeWtGQ6nW2g4qJ1l0mHnUN5FB2Ftt7wfP9KgYTGu6SlK85Ge_fVR_h-CbMK8zNvG52KygOGw_Uk79O7i_iEYbPqb23BHdQ/s1600/Unicef_TCWisnton_05.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibvbKWYwEuuOYlWMc5kM7b5OY98mAJs9jrRf31gN8M3c2uhQeWtGQ6nW2g4qJ1l0mHnUN5FB2Ftt7wfP9KgYTGu6SlK85Ge_fVR_h-CbMK8zNvG52KygOGw_Uk79O7i_iEYbPqb23BHdQ/s400/Unicef_TCWisnton_05.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kolora holds her daughter Semaima in the ruins of their home<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In Ra Province, Viti Levu island, Kolora, 26, holds her daughter
Semaima, 2, in the ruins of their house. In many villages, mothers and
children can be seen drifting in and out of the skeletons of what used
to be their homes. So far, there have been 44 confirmed deaths from the
cyclone, including three children, with numbers likely to rise.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0IaYM0SS1tZOaLycusCr-qRexGRWsWi6aGPKj5uMV2bu0Y18Z73oc9oaAyaNRAxQMHIC-8ftFETr4YtYgU2dk54CHw2cE9cL9XN_xIynX2aCNsUvmFzE_HVzIkFfNmhEYOb5Mg4wFCNE/s1600/Unicef_TCWisnton_08.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0IaYM0SS1tZOaLycusCr-qRexGRWsWi6aGPKj5uMV2bu0Y18Z73oc9oaAyaNRAxQMHIC-8ftFETr4YtYgU2dk54CHw2cE9cL9XN_xIynX2aCNsUvmFzE_HVzIkFfNmhEYOb5Mg4wFCNE/s400/Unicef_TCWisnton_08.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Micola, 18 (left) and Lusiana, 17 (right) at an evacuation centre<br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
As well as schools, churches are being used as evacuation centres, with
children and their families sleeping on the pews. Here, Micola, 18, and
Lusiana, 17, enjoy a rare moment of peace and quiet at an evacuation
centre in a church in Ra Province, Viti Levu island.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYW_oWid_YvXaBVoQNZZyR8qfbmpme5iXzvi0I0xZDhszyNDNxROympvx1Yqw1ImPQDPyE0ll07bOTFx1mFSb564iCJDqkiDwUfoo3Co0R6aHoxl5ihwHj3XfqWxIAdRYGZ0Cb56iIMCE/s1600/Unicef_TCWisnton_04.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYW_oWid_YvXaBVoQNZZyR8qfbmpme5iXzvi0I0xZDhszyNDNxROympvx1Yqw1ImPQDPyE0ll07bOTFx1mFSb564iCJDqkiDwUfoo3Co0R6aHoxl5ihwHj3XfqWxIAdRYGZ0Cb56iIMCE/s400/Unicef_TCWisnton_04.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lusiana, 10, helps her grandmother and aunt sort and fold clothes<br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Across Fiji, families are sifting through the debris of their lives and trying to rebuild. In times of devastation, communal living is widespread. Here 10-year-old Lusiana (right) helps her grandmother and aunt sort through and fold clothes for her family in Rakiraki village, Viti Levu island.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqLy5LrtFRtXmC54coqJyTdvVnvc8FOMV1KhtCnJJzou2jXHY8uqfwDk8vHd4kM-u_H-XUyhnfaQxDPmWVWjAjj3_541tdxCCWHrcqtmv53lIaG3ENXqB_9lYvbgKOjRcj73n4LtLKZ5Q/s1600/IMG_0289.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqLy5LrtFRtXmC54coqJyTdvVnvc8FOMV1KhtCnJJzou2jXHY8uqfwDk8vHd4kM-u_H-XUyhnfaQxDPmWVWjAjj3_541tdxCCWHrcqtmv53lIaG3ENXqB_9lYvbgKOjRcj73n4LtLKZ5Q/s400/IMG_0289.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">UNICEF supplies being offloaded at Koro Island<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Hing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
UNICEF supplies being offloaded from The Iloilovatu, a chartered vessel that Fiji Government arranged to carry emergency relief supplies to Koro Island, one of the places worst hit by Cyclone Winston. The supplies include water, sanitation and hygiene kits. They were transported to shore in small outboard motor boats at low tide. Villagers and emergency response workers worked together to carry the urgently needed relief supplies to land.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiilWwXJCl63iyG52M0m55EGru56b7g7e4fK-9c26jxDMqGftInsmn8FnVVTdVx6nVIsxejDRL1GtcEvxZLYs2TYRfFQhbmllQ46cJp41pK9Eng0FjmNdo7bluDmtUphE2Of864XfW3oJs/s1600/IMG_0429.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiilWwXJCl63iyG52M0m55EGru56b7g7e4fK-9c26jxDMqGftInsmn8FnVVTdVx6nVIsxejDRL1GtcEvxZLYs2TYRfFQhbmllQ46cJp41pK9Eng0FjmNdo7bluDmtUphE2Of864XfW3oJs/s400/IMG_0429.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vonevatevetaqula Kim with her grandson, Suliatonga<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Hing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
On Koro Island, Vonevatevetaqula Kim shares the frightening story of how her grandson, Suliatonga almost got swept away by the storm surge following Cyclone Winston.<br />
<br />
“A strong wave snatched Suliatonga from my grip as we scrambled to make our way to safety on higher ground,” she says. “He kept screaming and calling out as the waves tossed him around in the waters. Luckily, a family member was able to grab hold of him, rescuing him from the angry waves.”<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPWUNbJcMMUrN3dIIF-3E6ROebypTqgKHuawzdVLtbzxq45gae5iHJ13ScIyGfyYvGoQcpEgdpKSqVdScCgJ6FG0TLwJF_2UkuVyn4bagCwVUigwgZSqsahaHnMiAFQnuhYNooJ-6Sr4w/s1600/IMG_0493.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPWUNbJcMMUrN3dIIF-3E6ROebypTqgKHuawzdVLtbzxq45gae5iHJ13ScIyGfyYvGoQcpEgdpKSqVdScCgJ6FG0TLwJF_2UkuVyn4bagCwVUigwgZSqsahaHnMiAFQnuhYNooJ-6Sr4w/s400/IMG_0493.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At Nasau village, women wash clothes in the river<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Hing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
At Nasau village, women wash their remaining clothes in the river – the only available water source. Upstream from where the women are washing, villagers are collecting drinking water. Cyclone Winston smashed everything in its path as it crossed Koro Island, and there are few buildings left standing.<br />
<br />
Marks can be seen on the nearby hillside where villagers desperately scrambled up to the top of the hill, to get to safety. They carried children and elderly people up the steep hill in order to save their lives.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxPcYljY0ozC4Bk9lSGoQaQTZ-CE7Yl6r2qmYD0Vm_KM61sKaHZvqZOCYFEmVG2I8p4LoOojRZvmZGAb8yTYsRTzScMlzaTPnSAipG3q8dVVS-YrIMPic2vh3M1UuG4JufctpjJzrwf3Q/s1600/IMG_0541.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxPcYljY0ozC4Bk9lSGoQaQTZ-CE7Yl6r2qmYD0Vm_KM61sKaHZvqZOCYFEmVG2I8p4LoOojRZvmZGAb8yTYsRTzScMlzaTPnSAipG3q8dVVS-YrIMPic2vh3M1UuG4JufctpjJzrwf3Q/s400/IMG_0541.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A family collects emergency supplies after the cyclone<br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2016/Hing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
On Koro Island, a family collects emergency relief supplies after the cyclone. UNICEF Pacific is initially appealing for USD $5 million through the Pacific Humanitarian Action for Children appeal. This will be used for water, sanitation, hygiene, education, child protection, maternal and child health and nutrition, according to the Fiji Government’s priorities.<br />
<br />
<b>How can I help?</b><br />
<br />
After a natural disaster, many people’s immediate reaction is to help by sending food, household supplies and clothing. However, it takes time to clear these items through customs, sort and then distribute them, meaning they reach families much later than anticipated or needed.<br />
<br />
It is much more effective to donate cash to UNICEF and other relief organisations. UNICEF offices in Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere have set up donation lines where you can send financial assistance. You can also donate online. Your assistance will fund the purchasing of supplies, as well as transport and distribution to affected communities.<br />
<br />
<b>Donate online</b><br />
• <a href="http://www.unicef.org.au/appeals/fiji-children-s-emergency-appeal">Australia</a><br />
• <a href="https://www.unicef.org.nz/fiji">New Zealand</a>Andy Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12319516391207441053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-30184767091322445252016-02-24T03:00:00.001-08:002016-02-24T03:33:05.132-08:00Tropical Cyclone Winston leaves homes and lives shattered across Fiji<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMDCPYUej8WD7bd_HBU0UgF8UGoDs_zgezgoWyq-TWaGpGRh_bv6PdPZczXyFREIMuDaJb5EJtSyAVuOgTzxpkklkQzYd8O53eODoS1U-8FC5cL_e0nrSK4lpsefVXjhB2sWm6E6Jutsc/s1600/Fiji_Vlad-m.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMDCPYUej8WD7bd_HBU0UgF8UGoDs_zgezgoWyq-TWaGpGRh_bv6PdPZczXyFREIMuDaJb5EJtSyAVuOgTzxpkklkQzYd8O53eODoS1U-8FC5cL_e0nrSK4lpsefVXjhB2sWm6E6Jutsc/s400/Fiji_Vlad-m.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Makereta Nasiki, 13, sits in her now flooded bedroom<br />
UNICEF Pacific/2016/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i>By Donna Hoerder, UNICEF Pacific Islands</i><br />
<br />
As Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Winston left Fiji on Sunday, thousands of families were braced for the after effects, including searching for loved ones, returning to and in some cases rebuilding their homes and beginning the huge task of clean up and reconstruction.<br />
<br />
The most devastating natural disaster to hit Fiji in recorded history left no one untouched. All parts of the country experienced strong winds, tidal surges, flooding, power cuts and/or water cuts. Everywhere, children were among the most vulnerable and affected.<br />
<br />
UNICEF spoke to children and their families across the country to understand the impact of the Cyclone on their lives.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<b>Experiences of the storm</b><br />
<br />
Lote Ralulu Bakani’s aunt lost her home in Nabuna Village, Tavua, on the western side of Viti Levu, the main island of Fiji. “My cousin swam across the river to rescue her kids and mum (my aunt) while they sheltered in their concrete bathroom,” she says. ”The cyclone caused a coconut tree to fall on their wooden house, completely destroying it. She told me it will be one of the many ordeals she will never forget.”<br />
<br />
Lote’s nephew was one of many Queen Victoria School boarders who walked from their school to the town of Nausori, after their dormitory and surrounding school buildings were ruined. “He is still in a state of shock,” she says.<br />
<br />
Sonam Sapra has a mother and brother on the island of Taveuni, north east of Viti Levu, which was one of the places worst affected by the cyclone. She was only able to get hold of her family on Monday after trying all forms of communication since Saturday evening. “They told me that everything on the South side of Taveuni is completely destroyed,” she says. “There is nothing left. There is no food and water. My mother was injured during the cyclone but cannot get to hospital because the roads are blocked.”<br />
<br />
Makereta Nasiki, 13, (pictured above) sits in her now flooded bedroom. “It was the most terrifying night of my life. Our family had to move to three different places during the storm at night.”<br />
<br />
Jean Hutchinson Tikaram, a retired teacher, had to hide in a cupboard with her family while winds battered their home in Rakiraki, in the north of Viti Levu. “We were so scared.We could hear the winds howling and rain hammering on the roof,” she says. Her daughter tweeted in the dark throughout the storm to keep communication lines open with friends and family outside Fiji.<br />
<br />
<b>UNICEF’s response</b><br />
<br />
In Fiji, UNICEF has for several years supported emergency preparedness and disaster response training for district health and education officers, including how to do rapid assessments and using mobile data. Last year, we facilitated child protection in emergencies training to the Ministry of Women, Children and Poverty Alleviation. These skills are now being put into practice in evacuation centres across the country.<br />
<br />
UNICEF is working with partners and supportingthe government to help affected families, including those in evacuation centres in the hardest hit parts of Fiji, including Savusavu, Rakiraki, Ba, Lautoka, and Nadi.<br />
<br />
Our support to the Government’s cyclone response includes assessments, psychosocial activities for evacuated children, education in temporary learning spaces, and providing safe and clean water, sanitation and hygiene.<br />
<br />
UNICEF has pre-positioned emergency supplies already in Fiji, which are being distributed, but urgently need more given the magnitude of the disaster in Fiji. We need financial support for freight and logistics, especially for the dispatch of supplies to Viti Levu and seriously affected outer islands, some of which are only accessible by boat.<br />
<br />
<b>How can I help?</b><br />
<br />
After a natural disaster, many people’s immediate reaction is to help by sending food, household supplies and clothing. However, it takes time to clear these items through customs, sort and then distribute them, meaning they reach families much later than anticipated or needed.<br />
<br />
It is much more effective to donate cash to UNICEF and other relief organisations. UNICEF offices in Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere have set up donation lines where you can send financial assistance. You can also donate online. Your assistance will fund the purchasing of supplies, as well as transport and distribution to affected communities.<br />
<br />
Every child counts, and time is of the essence.<br />
<br />
<b>Donate online</b><br />
<ul>
<li><a href="http://www.unicef.org.au/appeals/fiji-children-s-emergency-appeal">Australia</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.unicef.org.nz/fiji">New Zealand</a></li>
</ul>
Andy Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12319516391207441053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-52404046850291245852016-02-22T23:45:00.000-08:002016-02-22T23:46:04.852-08:00Cyclone Winston: children react to the devastation<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHBJbbIBt0925knACcZJ2-Ece3dvSIXqo2EpHZwj9MmqnNe9cS-VIMAFOejsbV10OvXOtwF2P0oi_RVkDc1brGnwlUszQEhBEt8gM_hKscG6yMYbQeXF7GXkPKmRx29Pxpefq9A953FBA/s1600/Pacific-children.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHBJbbIBt0925knACcZJ2-Ece3dvSIXqo2EpHZwj9MmqnNe9cS-VIMAFOejsbV10OvXOtwF2P0oi_RVkDc1brGnwlUszQEhBEt8gM_hKscG6yMYbQeXF7GXkPKmRx29Pxpefq9A953FBA/s400/Pacific-children.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
Communities across Fiji have been devastated by the strongest storm ever recorded in the Southern Hemisphere and children will be among those hardest hit. Tropical Cyclone Winston has flattened entire villages with wind gusts in excess of 320 km/h and devastating storm surges and rains.<br />
<br />
UNICEF has begun assisting those most affected. There are an estimated 400,000 people, including around 165,000 children, affected by the cyclone. Thousands of homes have been damaged. Hospitals, schools and water supplies have been hit hard, while damage to crops and livestock has cut off families’ food and livelihoods.<br />
<br />
Some young Fijians share early accounts of the aftermath after a terrifying night sheltering from Cyclone Winston.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<b>Aaron Lipua, 9</b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHF0lp0UshMLsYkatjEZUxMh6xy99hc0wxMPRsXdDsHzws9aCQMCA96Ih11YmFZq2w9LMeXRwEu9Vzwyqn_YrtBkxaE3r-W8-lsnHeqlIB3MbaIrifpstJNkIrAjIbAswgwcXtUKM4Uq8/s1600/Aaron.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="222" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHF0lp0UshMLsYkatjEZUxMh6xy99hc0wxMPRsXdDsHzws9aCQMCA96Ih11YmFZq2w9LMeXRwEu9Vzwyqn_YrtBkxaE3r-W8-lsnHeqlIB3MbaIrifpstJNkIrAjIbAswgwcXtUKM4Uq8/s320/Aaron.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
“I was scared. I thought the roof would fly away but I thank the Lord. It was terrifying. [During the storm] we told stories, played cards and board games with my mum, my dad, brothers and sister.”<br />
<br />
<b>Angelina Cheer, 5</b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDI2ALyZ2eHYx5JtGYRP_yuq9nUO4PwGaqL8ihGgn2_JMj_S_A013KzMPcITnWLokXfRpQF-wZWOSeQCFMlB_cBY0EhLbXV7VCN4PcnYVYBDCYvggYhpO7Ark6qSXbq3YNwAjJjZZeDl0/s1600/Angelina.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDI2ALyZ2eHYx5JtGYRP_yuq9nUO4PwGaqL8ihGgn2_JMj_S_A013KzMPcITnWLokXfRpQF-wZWOSeQCFMlB_cBY0EhLbXV7VCN4PcnYVYBDCYvggYhpO7Ark6qSXbq3YNwAjJjZZeDl0/s320/Angelina.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
“My father and my brother needed to climb up the roof because the big square thing on top broke and we were worried about the roof flying away. It was a little bit scary for me. When the power was off we light our candles.”<br />
<br />
<b>Bella Leqa, 6</b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig3y5yBv6hpqkeasFHcUF-FS7ZEw960CLCbYL0IFes3UUbcd9bHRUr38XFO_ApXE-zn9e7qjt4UoKg6nCNhaowk9SNUnKir5pHwrBPliG9j4B2SbIIfwzC7aNxM6Bp5SZZYrToh7eZgtU/s1600/Bella.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig3y5yBv6hpqkeasFHcUF-FS7ZEw960CLCbYL0IFes3UUbcd9bHRUr38XFO_ApXE-zn9e7qjt4UoKg6nCNhaowk9SNUnKir5pHwrBPliG9j4B2SbIIfwzC7aNxM6Bp5SZZYrToh7eZgtU/s320/Bella.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
“I turned the candles on, I was waiting for the hurricane. The hurricane was coming and the house was shaking and the windows were breaking and the shutter fell.”<br />
<br />
<b>Isaiah Leqa, 10</b><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghyARTbOAZ3bTC2gUMGbpp5l1e4UtJSbkHFXhg0E2jZFmZiTN80_H5Qker5LI17uMALeLGIq4iDKbYRQrc_KFU4kB3bt1UwWLrFlox035IUHff_B7GieaOI0ccwjhNCpWX6aqAwdrbYzo/s1600/Isaiah.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghyARTbOAZ3bTC2gUMGbpp5l1e4UtJSbkHFXhg0E2jZFmZiTN80_H5Qker5LI17uMALeLGIq4iDKbYRQrc_KFU4kB3bt1UwWLrFlox035IUHff_B7GieaOI0ccwjhNCpWX6aqAwdrbYzo/s320/Isaiah.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
“It was a strong wind, it blew some covers away. That’s how strong it was. My mum said ‘oh this wind is so strong it’ll blow the roof off our house. I’d tell other kids to be prepared ‘cos if a cyclone comes it can maybe blow off their roofs and when they wake up maybe their roofs are gone.”<br />
<br />
<b>UNICEF in action</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB4hqFMaizR4L4uK27xUYJkGV6pDNz2dAyTmE3fVvu6Lv0J4ypmGar529IHoSuBhWegzi_CHLOKh-kZ_DTrzv4f0u1sD469Is9Dc7PU5PUnWLE7_dKWts0dPv6bk-KSqU0120AIJWDe4k/s1600/IMG_9893.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjB4hqFMaizR4L4uK27xUYJkGV6pDNz2dAyTmE3fVvu6Lv0J4ypmGar529IHoSuBhWegzi_CHLOKh-kZ_DTrzv4f0u1sD469Is9Dc7PU5PUnWLE7_dKWts0dPv6bk-KSqU0120AIJWDe4k/s320/IMG_9893.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<b><br /></b>
There’s no time to waste. Yesterday, UNICEF already packed and shipped essential emergency supplies, including water purification tablets and sanitation supplies, for immediate shipment to Koro and Ovalau Islands. <a href="https://www.facebook.com/likeunicefpacific/">Follow UNICEF Pacific for updates along the way</a>.<br />
<br />
Fiji has suffered incalculable losses from this awful tragedy and UNICEF is in place to assess, respond and help Fiji recover.Andy Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/12319516391207441053noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-50903831245983234282015-09-13T17:39:00.001-07:002015-09-17T15:33:22.294-07:00A helping hand for an 8-month-old survivor <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Wd4W1TzXpWLKUtNdoB4k9ipa699jE20rMkPPxl71VySpi2SfvnHZiIGVrNkZ0wQySsF-WWDhydLTpTRLLYbW_p5AhL2aDoTXvufyYeYWu14WiBSS1_E3mCW8-mtPIEgW-6-aykwhKVXT/s1600/IMG_8604.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_Wd4W1TzXpWLKUtNdoB4k9ipa699jE20rMkPPxl71VySpi2SfvnHZiIGVrNkZ0wQySsF-WWDhydLTpTRLLYbW_p5AhL2aDoTXvufyYeYWu14WiBSS1_E3mCW8-mtPIEgW-6-aykwhKVXT/s400/IMG_8604.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div align="center" class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US">8-month-old Nichola is one of the first babies in
Vanuatu to receive nutrition supplements</span></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US"> through UNICEF following Cyclone Pam.
We visit him to see what difference they’re making<i>.</i></span><br />
UNICEF Pacific/2015/Berthe</div>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="text-align: justify;"><br /></span>
<span style="text-align: justify;">I met Nichola
for the first time when a nurse measured the circumference of his arm at Pango
Community Centre in Port Vila, Vanuatu. I was relieved to see that the colour
of the special measuring tape was green, meaning that Nichola wasn’t
dangerously underweight.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"></span><br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">Just before that,
his mother Melissa, age 21, had received counseling on infant and young child
feeding practices through UNICEF’s partner, Save the Children Australia.
Melissa is one of more than 11,000 mothers who have received micro-nutrient
powder and nutrition advice for their very young babies in Vanuatu. The
distribution of nutrition supplements is a new intervention in Vanuatu that
began after Cyclone Pam hit the country in March 2015. Curious to see how these
supplements would be received in the community, I went back to meet Melissa at
her home a month later.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">Melissa welcomed
us outside her small house made from corrugated iron sheets, no further than
50m from the beach. I immediately wondered how she, her husband and Nichola had
survived the cyclone in this fragile home. It was reassuring to learn that they
took refuge in a relative’s house during the cyclone.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">Listening to Melissa
talking, I quickly realized that Nichola was already a strong and much-loved
baby. His risky journey started one month before he was born, when his mother
travelled for almost a week in perilous conditions on a boat to reach Port
Vila. Melissa was determined to reach a safe and equipped hospital to give
birth - she lost twins last year and was focused on giving Nichola the best
start to life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqrcjrkeUDx327JNQ7OcCKNPNyubJ9-Ow-8V8jW6B5CHrMOddBhjqhQTnkP4d5XaT929dgx5QsmDj3R0iBf01UFqHrJAj8RZODfMwKYbhkSGpkNAd47tvL8Exlc1B7Lvq7x_1RMhDhDe0W/s1600/IMG_8637.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqrcjrkeUDx327JNQ7OcCKNPNyubJ9-Ow-8V8jW6B5CHrMOddBhjqhQTnkP4d5XaT929dgx5QsmDj3R0iBf01UFqHrJAj8RZODfMwKYbhkSGpkNAd47tvL8Exlc1B7Lvq7x_1RMhDhDe0W/s400/IMG_8637.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">8-month-old Nichola and </span>Rebecca Olul Monitoring & Evaluation Officer, UNICEF Vanuatu.<br />
UNICEF Pacific/2015/Berthe</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">Thanks to his
family’s determination Nichola made it safely into the world but, when he was
only two months old, Category 5 Cyclone Pam devastated the country. Nichola and
his family survived the storm but he got very sick a few weeks after the cyclone.
Worried about his fever, Melissa again took him to the hospital – it turned out
the rainwater they had been collecting and giving to Nichola was unsafe. Melissa
and her husband didn’t know that Nichola didn’t need water at that young age –
they also didn’t know how to make the rainwater safe to drink through boiling. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">After an
emergency, new mothers like Melissa often need support to care for their babies
in the most difficult of circumstances. Mothers learn about the importance of
exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months of their baby’s life, and how
to complement breastfeeding with safe solids after the baby reaches seven
months. In the first six months after the cyclone, UNICEF and partners have
reached nearly 9,000 mothers with information and counselling on safe feeding
practices. As part of the session, mothers are also provided with micro-nutrient
powders for their babies over six months who are eating semi-solid food, to
help them grow and develop during a time when their diets might be compromised
due to destruction of food sources and the stress their mothers are under. The
micro-nutrients come in a powder form, which is simply sprinkled on top of the
children’s normal food, avoiding the need for stressful pills or injections.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">Melissa shyly
tells us that, “At first I was afraid to give Nicola the powder in his food but
then when I gave it to him I realised it was good for him. It helped his body
to be stronger. Then I continued to give it.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">Once mothers understand
the benefits of the supplement it becomes a much-valued tool for their
children’s development. After counselling and orientation has been provided,
supplements are distributed through grassroots Village Health Workers to children
aged 6 to 23 months. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">Nichola gurgles
and smiles as the adults talk around him. He gazes at my face in wonderment and
tries tugging my hair. Like every child of his age he tries to put a strand
into his mouth to suck on to identify what it is, all signs of a healthy and
inquisitive baby who, with a little help, is developing as he should, despite
the most challenging of times. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-21853936167858112032015-09-13T16:25:00.002-07:002015-09-16T12:55:47.204-07:00Lessons in grief, hope and recovery from a seven-year-old boy. <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2izqGcI7wTZ7B5o69ycKsTEjNsbmU1uYKPr5l8kH-oCKWvtR-AjU5UM9lbeuM67o0JBd1qCewcYsMBxABTy58VXASawsuZIGP14OQ0f5c3pzXsJze7U_A3urPpIxzoVWKOG_csSr72jxk/s1600/IMG_8987.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2izqGcI7wTZ7B5o69ycKsTEjNsbmU1uYKPr5l8kH-oCKWvtR-AjU5UM9lbeuM67o0JBd1qCewcYsMBxABTy58VXASawsuZIGP14OQ0f5c3pzXsJze7U_A3urPpIxzoVWKOG_csSr72jxk/s400/IMG_8987.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tavai Soalo, a facilitator in the UNICEF-supported Just Play sports for <br />
development programme and Nalau.<br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">UNICEF Pacific/2015/Berthe</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
“I remember Tavai. He came to my school and we played football”, says Nalau.</div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Tavai Soalo, a facilitator in the UNICEF-supported Just Play sports for development programme, also remembers Nalau. He was facilitating a Just Play session at Sorovanga School, Vanuatu, aimed at helping children to recover emotionally from Cyclone Pam, when Nalau shared his story. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i><b>“We played games then I asked the children how they felt after Cyclone Pam” Tavai recalls. “I gently encouraged them to share their experiences, feelings, thoughts and even plans for the future.”</b></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Sitting in the circle, all the children expressed how they felt after Category 5 Cyclone Pam devastated their communities – but seven-year-old Nalau froze.<i><b> “When I saw his reaction, I knew I had to give him time to say something and not push him” explains Tavai. “So I asked the question again and there was a second round of answers from the children. This time Nalau spoke up, quietly saying ‘My father died during the cyclone’. I was momentarily lost for words.”</b></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
After Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu in March, UNICEF, in partnership with the Oceania Football Confederation and the Vanuatu Football Federation, organised a special Just Play Emergency Programme. Over two months, the programme targeted schools in the most affected areas of the country, helping children to recover through sports and emotional support, while also educating them about hygiene, safety and healthy eating habits. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The Just Play programme teaches children through sporting activities that enable them to process and put aside stressful thoughts about the cyclone, enjoying a safe space to share their experiences, learn and have fun. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5Ui5Ad6871SFLVA96Xwp9kz5zWRrqRmFEGTi2IrfquqlcdxciVVS7qtmcTv5DEaKztzs4QyPLuLNhyphenhyphenf7GQ4keYkkwi4oE4yr9wRCHc_Q_ipB5NA47vZ3K52i6UAjWbYdDfsN2WuJyDEGV/s1600/IMG_8967.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5Ui5Ad6871SFLVA96Xwp9kz5zWRrqRmFEGTi2IrfquqlcdxciVVS7qtmcTv5DEaKztzs4QyPLuLNhyphenhyphenf7GQ4keYkkwi4oE4yr9wRCHc_Q_ipB5NA47vZ3K52i6UAjWbYdDfsN2WuJyDEGV/s400/IMG_8967.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Tavai Soalo and the Just Play participants.<br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">UNICEF Pacific/2015/Berthe</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
With seven years’ experience working with children, 27-year-old Tavai was able to create a safe environment for Nalau, developing a strong and supportive relationship. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The last activity Tavai organised with the children taking part in the programme was drawing a picture of what makes them happy. <i><b>“Most of the children in my group were drawing football fields. I couldn’t see what Nalau was drawing, so I waited until everyone was finished”, he recalls. All the children took turns talking about their drawings. Nalau proudly showed us his drawing saying, “Home makes me happy. So, I drew my home”.</b></i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Tavai didn’t know at the time that Nalau and his family were living in a tent after the cyclone destroyed their home. The money Nalau’s mother made selling vegetables at the market was enough to pay for Nalau’s education but not to rebuild their home. That she prioritised his education over their home speaks volumes about her love for her child. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
After explaining his drawing to Tavai, Nalau added, <i><b>“I am happy now … but I will never forget that my father died during the cyclone.”</b></i> It’s safe to say that Tavai will never forget Nalau, the boy who taught his teacher about grief, hope and recovery.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-13572140149136426902015-09-13T15:21:00.000-07:002015-09-16T12:56:06.694-07:00The tent that brought children back to school<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbsE1_Xa9eobdvkNu2I5sibsyaMq1WBI91FTWwXGvTqCUbzXEI7xOkDXZcj1S_XtyXxMmsmxAiuRIr8IGfCFc8tW5Un5AOxNW-d_AkpPisGxhHg8lXKW4cJhinD79ZkQRfZQBi3bQzlnHs/s1600/IMG_8486.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbsE1_Xa9eobdvkNu2I5sibsyaMq1WBI91FTWwXGvTqCUbzXEI7xOkDXZcj1S_XtyXxMmsmxAiuRIr8IGfCFc8tW5Un5AOxNW-d_AkpPisGxhHg8lXKW4cJhinD79ZkQRfZQBi3bQzlnHs/s400/IMG_8486.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: center;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">Joana
and Daisly used to miss school regularly before Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu. </span></i><br />
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;">The
unique experience of learning in a tent has brought them back. </span></i><br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8px;">UNICEF Pacific/2015/Berthe</span></div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: left;">
<i><span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt;"><br /></span></i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;">When Joana and Daisly share their experience of Category 5 Cyclone Pam, I can hear the horror of that night in their voices – voices that remind me of my two young sons and our own night of terror.</span><br />
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;">Seven-year-old Joana is from a small community in Port Vila. She was home with her younger sister and her parents when the cyclone hit Vanuatu with devastating force on 13 March 2015. She tells me the wind was so strong they had to shelter in a nearby shop after the cyclone ripped the roof of their house off. Fear still echoes in her voice when recalling the events of that night six months ago.</span><br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<a name='more'></a><span style="line-height: 17.12px;">Joana’s school friend Daisly, also 7 years old, lives with his parents and his baby sister at Freswota, another neighborhood of Port Vila. He did not always live there. Daisly vividly remembers his parents packing their clothes the afternoon before the cyclone hit to move to a safer place. His voice becomes a whisper as he tells me how scary it was for him and his little sister. He also tells me how grateful he is that the family found refuge somewhere else; the next day they returned to find their house completely destroyed by the cyclone. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;">Joana and Daisly are among 82,000 children in Vanuatu who are recovering from Cyclone Pam. Joana explains that her parents quickly repaired her house and bought new clothes for her and her younger sister. Daisly has permanently moved into a stronger house in a new neighborhood and still misses his favourite jacket, lost during the Cyclone, saying “There was water everywhere in our house. It damaged all of our belongings.” </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;">One of UNICEF’s priorities is to bring children back to school as quickly as possible after disaster strikes. Amongst other measures, UNICEF provides tents for temporary learning spaces, school backpacks, learning materials and school supplies. Joana and Daisly are among the 280 children of Kawenu Primary School in Port Vila who received UNICEF backpacks. Their classrooms, destroyed in the cyclone, has been temporarily replaced by a tent. Although communities are quickly recovering from the cyclone, important infrastructure like classrooms need to be funded and built to agreed standards so they tend to take a little longer to fully replace. Six months on from Cyclone Pam, more than 6,000 children like Joana and Daisly are still attending classes in temporary tents provided by UNICEF. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;">For adults this may not seem ideal, but when I ask the children how they’re finding going to school in a tent, the mood instantly changes. Joana’s eyes light up and Daisly’s face shows the hint of a smile. “I like coming to school every day in a tent!” says Joana with a bright smile. “It’s fun and not many children go to school in a tent!” </span><br />
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_ogrBI3NTO_RHpYxggWPosZEKScQpyNOb2GUw5E5mgsstLlUabYbIRK3FmWC8NYdDsTevOeTT_gC8w7f4DiNR2TIAhYY34nvy1onxpkyNILux_FTf_mupoLcBuNhi-MYoAK9suzrYPb0E/s1600/Joana.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_ogrBI3NTO_RHpYxggWPosZEKScQpyNOb2GUw5E5mgsstLlUabYbIRK3FmWC8NYdDsTevOeTT_gC8w7f4DiNR2TIAhYY34nvy1onxpkyNILux_FTf_mupoLcBuNhi-MYoAK9suzrYPb0E/s320/Joana.jpg" width="320" /></a> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0GtrNg2FfdLL9s9z7uQ-Z2WAGYJZE_FecDrfpOKn__XZzuNie7d4VEVc4LKfp7H0BbGWJVcWf5fvGtU2wXy6izjS3lrQQv0AZO3o20HtAdQMAZ3HC4PQ_YJpyW62X-uMWxRJvEGYqEThp/s1600/Daisly.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0GtrNg2FfdLL9s9z7uQ-Z2WAGYJZE_FecDrfpOKn__XZzuNie7d4VEVc4LKfp7H0BbGWJVcWf5fvGtU2wXy6izjS3lrQQv0AZO3o20HtAdQMAZ3HC4PQ_YJpyW62X-uMWxRJvEGYqEThp/s320/Daisly.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span>
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;">Daisly also likes learning in a tent, but for less obvious reasons. “It’s funny. Look, when it rains, the water comes out of this hole,” said Daisly pointing at a drainage funnel on the side of the tent. It was clear from the children’s expressions when they described their temporary classroom that it was a novel experience. The children have made it their own – decorating the inside of the tent with their pictures and writing.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;">Joana and Daisly’s teacher, Delma Joel, overhears my conversation with the children. She takes me aside later and explains that “A few children, including Joana and Daisly, didn’t always attend school on a regular basis before the cyclone. The experience of schooling in a tent has influenced their perspective. They’re now coming to school every day.” She also tells us that when she mentioned to her pupils going back into a normal classroom one day, they responded with, “This should never happen!”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;">I left the school gate amidst calls of “UNICEF!” from the girls and boys preparing for their musical concert in a few nights’ time. The rehearsals and concert are being held in the second tent the school received from UNICEF, a reminder that school is so much more than formal classes; these cultural and social experiences are just as much a part of learning and growth for young children as anything else. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="EN-US" style="line-height: 17.12px;"></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;">Six months after Cyclone Pam, it’s clear that, despite many challenges, communities are well on the road to recovery. And for resilient and optimistic young children like Joana and Daisly, even temporary inconveniences like tents have a silver lining. </span><span style="line-height: 17.12px;"> </span><br />
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyHM83cJwEeqkiYDQlCBN91haWl04RxCg1iRIvFexii-49m3t73hNFKC9t6dnNtw_GYHPABI41ng3tVNeZveoTcHJtGEv3-PYep0TrAPfj81AwHBLUnu0I6DJJ3_h5ZK72kK0BIGTMfpfO/s1600/IMG_8487.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyHM83cJwEeqkiYDQlCBN91haWl04RxCg1iRIvFexii-49m3t73hNFKC9t6dnNtw_GYHPABI41ng3tVNeZveoTcHJtGEv3-PYep0TrAPfj81AwHBLUnu0I6DJJ3_h5ZK72kK0BIGTMfpfO/s400/IMG_8487.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">UNICEF Pacific/2015/Berthe</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span style="line-height: 17.12px;"><br /></span></div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-67735548063869061072015-09-01T15:03:00.001-07:002015-09-13T17:58:46.624-07:00Champions for healthy schools<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRHV2QbTgwyCUs2rnfbtVOVYDhEOPLdVLB6xv_UldN1WmBV_w2kyLeWHj-pWE4RrLx_3ALt4DJI66s6tZDMARgV0lBMiF7b0JbOFo8LbAF8PHGNoUz4eODR4LQQ0ynfPCq-8Tc6hm68ZMe/s1600/DSCF2514T788.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRHV2QbTgwyCUs2rnfbtVOVYDhEOPLdVLB6xv_UldN1WmBV_w2kyLeWHj-pWE4RrLx_3ALt4DJI66s6tZDMARgV0lBMiF7b0JbOFo8LbAF8PHGNoUz4eODR4LQQ0ynfPCq-8Tc6hm68ZMe/s400/DSCF2514T788.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nasautoka District School. © Akvo/2015/Stefan</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
It’s not something you might think about all that often – but the provision of safe water, sanitation and hygiene facilities in schools can mean the difference for children between staying healthy and safe at school – or getting sick and missing important classes - or worse. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
While access to water and sanitation in Fijian schools is improving every day, a large number of students still suffer from related diseases such as trachoma, diarrhoea, lice and scabies. Active efforts to promote sanitation and hygiene in schools can support work to eliminate these problems.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In Fiji, teachers, children, government employees and other sanitation ‘champions’ have worked hard to improve water, sanitation and hygiene, using the ‘Three Star Approach’, which promotes safe, healthy and protective learning environments and helps children to adopt healthy behaviours. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The approach was piloted in 15 schools in the Nausori School District, Fiji, in partnership with Akvo, a not-for-profit foundation that uses mobile technology to quickly assess, map and monitor changes in water, sanitation and hygiene status.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrH7592tGcpWjczKukguB5kDvTHT2hoTEzO-2aKbJZn_5msUTetwM8bCaUOz5xIXYX3xQg8WCw0D6xhiYz0wqD-4w2i2EF5cJmN5Rlc-lEjP544LMH3lmrT9Rh97Bi1a8ONSaS93Xjd5kv/s1600/20150716_100942.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrH7592tGcpWjczKukguB5kDvTHT2hoTEzO-2aKbJZn_5msUTetwM8bCaUOz5xIXYX3xQg8WCw0D6xhiYz0wqD-4w2i2EF5cJmN5Rlc-lEjP544LMH3lmrT9Rh97Bi1a8ONSaS93Xjd5kv/s320/20150716_100942.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Korovou Primary School <br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2015/Waqairapoa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Through the programme, schools were supported to construct group hand washing facilities from simple and inexpensive materials, drawing on local knowledge and skills within the school and nearby communities to install them. The children have taken to the new facilities like ducks to water – and participating schools have also used innovative ways and methods to support hand washing even when water was not available. In Nasautoka District School the Sanitation Champions created a 10-step hand washing drill for the children. When water is not available, the children line up before lunch with their water bottles. Older students walk along the line and provide soapy water to pairs of students who then take turns washing their hands and face and rinsing each other off.<br />
<br />
Coupled with the primary school tooth brushing programme, the addition of hand washing and face washing completes the basic steps needed for a complete hygiene programme where ongoing hygiene activities are incorporated in daily school events. </div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
With the support of the Sanitation Champions, target schools and children have made great strides in prioritising sanitation and hygiene, and in taking practical steps to promote it with all children. Recently the Sanitation Champions took a well-deserved day off to visit schools where their hard work had borne fruit, standing for a photo shoot in schools that are now much healthier thanks to their efforts. With the great enthusiasm shown by the schools and their administrations, the programme shows the true potential of teachers and students as agents of change within the school and household environment. The day showed just how much could be achieved through simple and effective measures that target and build on existing structures and arrangements for long-term behaviour change activities.<br />
<br /></div>
</div>
<div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ1qc0W0sd00yJ5-b3u3Dt9DUhrZ6z77FtJ8-moi67E_bsJiCiGCfwNpuTYLeqfMPh4A5QGj4twoXanvEoA970UjkcAG0kIOQgt4rjASubkgQdyUmDV98fhLp-girPvxWY9lufBRFYyJcV/s1600/IMG_0896.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZ1qc0W0sd00yJ5-b3u3Dt9DUhrZ6z77FtJ8-moi67E_bsJiCiGCfwNpuTYLeqfMPh4A5QGj4twoXanvEoA970UjkcAG0kIOQgt4rjASubkgQdyUmDV98fhLp-girPvxWY9lufBRFYyJcV/s400/IMG_0896.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Nasautoka District School 10-step hand washing drill . <br />
© UNICEF Pacific/2015/Waqairapoa</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /></div>
<div>
<b>Champions present include:</b><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
Fiji Ministry of Education. Heritage and Arts</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Fiji Ministry of Health and Medical Services </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Fijian teachers Association WASH Unit</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Staff, Administration and Children of Korovou Primary School</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Staff, Administration and Children of Nasautoka District School</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
UNICEF Pacific</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Akvo Foundation</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Vinaka Vaka Levu, Dhanyavad, Faiak se’ea and Thank You</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>UNICEF Pacific</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<i>Water, Sanitation and Hygiene</i></div>
</div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-65923910585587307122015-08-30T17:44:00.001-07:002015-08-30T17:44:05.290-07:00A child who is not registered at birth is invisible<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GhmOLuONOSI" width="480"></iframe>UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-79865483672700624322015-08-24T19:02:00.001-07:002015-08-24T19:02:47.680-07:00My Name, My Future: Birth Registration in Kiribati<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/mjSZGcxWlkE" width="480"></iframe>UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-41339795249729813492015-06-12T00:06:00.001-07:002015-06-12T00:06:37.522-07:00Eight months pregnant when Cyclone Pam hit, mother to a beautiful baby now.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgXFaFFEPMK-830h01UQIoIEDp5lKHs8hXvDn6OWi4-Cgp0Fpt8bgK1K1aCWalc9XIH4OLDN4xC7IoU7XG43VVEbBEHFnTzpoOu_2QbCCAIZ1Q6hvQEKxOPZj-wmnEYqnSNbsXlC1eWGRQ/s1600/Wilma.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgXFaFFEPMK-830h01UQIoIEDp5lKHs8hXvDn6OWi4-Cgp0Fpt8bgK1K1aCWalc9XIH4OLDN4xC7IoU7XG43VVEbBEHFnTzpoOu_2QbCCAIZ1Q6hvQEKxOPZj-wmnEYqnSNbsXlC1eWGRQ/s400/Wilma.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<br />
<i>Wilma was eight months pregnant when Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu. Three months later, she and her new baby face the future together.</i><br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
When Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu on 13 March 2015, it didn’t spare the island of Ifira, situated only 10 minutes away by boat from the capital Port Vila. Ifira took a direct hit, with the cyclone destroying trees, houses, schools, boats and damaging the sole health centre for the island’s population of around thousand people.<br />
<br />
A storm of this ferocity is terrifying for anyone to live through, but Wilma, 20, was also eight months pregnant with her first child when the cyclone hit. The 230km/h winds blew away the roof of her house, ruining most furniture and belongings.<br />
<br />
When we met her less a week after the cyclone had hit, Wilma put on her bravest face for the camera, showing her beautiful smile. When we talked though, her fears were evident.<br />
<br />
Big challenges lay ahead. Wilma, her mother and grandfather found temporary shelter with their relatives in an adjacent house but they were going to have to rebuild their house, and their life, while also welcoming a new baby. Their garden food crops had been destroyed and they were worried that their limited income wouldn’t stretch to cover expensive imported foods.<br />
<br />
Today, three months have passed since Cyclone Pam hit, and a lot has changed for Wilma. Francois, now 2 months old, has joined the family. The birth occurred without any complication. He is perfectly healthy with big cheeks and a very cute smile.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiymR4ZUgc0CdVADv-7KYPucRSHJzJxHHFOwEYayLPT-Uy1bUOIPyT4HeipeijdmLJkpx3ro6ESP7CabVNEXaQMsJWsbh5sG2nk3F4rXZTB1l0bqgcKnrTpzsr7D2xmDl9UaAUAd6bvcM2R/s1600/ifira-three-months-later-9.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiymR4ZUgc0CdVADv-7KYPucRSHJzJxHHFOwEYayLPT-Uy1bUOIPyT4HeipeijdmLJkpx3ro6ESP7CabVNEXaQMsJWsbh5sG2nk3F4rXZTB1l0bqgcKnrTpzsr7D2xmDl9UaAUAd6bvcM2R/s400/ifira-three-months-later-9.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wilma and her new baby Francois . <span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">©UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/McGarry</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Wilma takes Francois by boat across the bay to Port Vila Hospital every week for routine check-ups. It is where she learnt how to breastfeed and how to keep Francois healthy despite the challenges she faces. He was also vaccinated against measles; a huge campaign launched by the Government of Vanuatu, with the support of UNICEF, to avoid an outbreak after Cyclone Pam (there had been an outbreak before the cyclone that posed a big risk to families now thrust into closer proximity in shelters).<br />
<br />
Today, Wilma appears relaxed. She seems to be a natural with Francois, even at her young age. Her natural strength and resilience also shines through, despite everything she and her family have experienced.<br />
<br />
Wilma is still living with her relatives in a crowded house made of congregated iron sheets. Their own house was so damaged by the cyclone that her family are still working to repair it with limited resources. They have no access to construction materials, which makes the repair very slow; all the work is done voluntarily by members of the extended family.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKHQzu83feo1UMOJ9vfsUPfktzMKxtq1ekIKmR2vWXN93hzZWri3o5p4dXkoifG8J1Bx9wXv4bgPPZVxvCxJIe0Wwz8pLwakbEJcbVtTYglS77U835-1Zzlnta8oG1dyBG3SsJSJZQHAEN/s1600/ifira-three-months-later-8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKHQzu83feo1UMOJ9vfsUPfktzMKxtq1ekIKmR2vWXN93hzZWri3o5p4dXkoifG8J1Bx9wXv4bgPPZVxvCxJIe0Wwz8pLwakbEJcbVtTYglS77U835-1Zzlnta8oG1dyBG3SsJSJZQHAEN/s400/ifira-three-months-later-8.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Baby Francois. <span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">©UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/McGarry</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Although uprooted trees and damaged buildings still litter the island, life has somewhat returned to normal on the little island of Ifira, although there is still a lot to do to recover from Cyclone Pam. The two schools are still badly damaged, and the health centre is still in need of supplies.<br />
<br />
Ifira is still a long way from full recovery but, looking at Wilma as she tends to Francois, it’s clear that the people here are much tougher than any storm, and committed to walking together on the road to recovery.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-18720139251237721492015-06-11T23:21:00.000-07:002015-06-11T23:21:06.366-07:00Learning to smile again after Cyclone Pam<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<i><br /></i>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL0MTPg9ouHbjvxicJs8IHls9v620GzEG7kyj94hfx9nzXF_d9XOoosGeYUGPgGHQsqweMsvmSSOmlNfv7mkR2nBbwQeYHOJ8iyBmJwebr7n7mEPjoMOaLjZnt2VLsSytN3mObzVlhyphenhyphenwwo/s1600/Untitled-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL0MTPg9ouHbjvxicJs8IHls9v620GzEG7kyj94hfx9nzXF_d9XOoosGeYUGPgGHQsqweMsvmSSOmlNfv7mkR2nBbwQeYHOJ8iyBmJwebr7n7mEPjoMOaLjZnt2VLsSytN3mObzVlhyphenhyphenwwo/s400/Untitled-1.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Three-year-old Rachel just a day after Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam devastated Vanuatu.,<br />
and three months on. © UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/McGarry</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<i><br /></i>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<i>We first met three-year-old Rachel just a day after Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam devastated Vanuatu. Three months on, we go back to check in on her. </i></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Rachel’s world was turned upside down when Cyclone Pam slammed into Vanuatu late on Friday 13 March. At just three years of age she watched her house, and seven others, washed away by thousands of litres of water from the ruptured water tank at the top of the hill her house once sat on.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
When we went to visit her and her family the next day we met a child who was fearful and withdrawn. She wasn’t communicating, instead sweeping the bare concrete pad where her house had been, perhaps a child’s attempt to put things back the way they were before the cyclone.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
It was clear that Rachel wasn’t ok, and that full recovery was a long way away. When her father disappeared from sight for even a few seconds she immediately became profoundly distressed. We saw her again a week later and she was still withdrawn, refusing to talk or have her photo taken, a child’s choice that we will always respect. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9OqFfM4G9OIjRRAVNi1oO4mRcdc3sNxOEzm-6Il2prfcgAT7r4MhZRRNGTueG_4q1-nEijOt87de6AEl2YggVY9zi5KLe-C1dTGSJZdfjd5teu3w1pGVYH7DZafcl_fAg6uR31wGDyzrT/s1600/vila-rachels-story-5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9OqFfM4G9OIjRRAVNi1oO4mRcdc3sNxOEzm-6Il2prfcgAT7r4MhZRRNGTueG_4q1-nEijOt87de6AEl2YggVY9zi5KLe-C1dTGSJZdfjd5teu3w1pGVYH7DZafcl_fAg6uR31wGDyzrT/s400/vila-rachels-story-5.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Three-year-old Rachel just a day after Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam devastated Vanuatu.<br />
© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/McGarry</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Her stress was a normal reaction to an abnormal event, one that generally passes with time for most children – but three months on, we nonetheless went to find Rachel again with some trepidation, what if she was still badly affected? </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The difference could not have been greater. A completely different Rachel greeted us: a ball of energy, smiling, playing and happy to be photographed. A little shy at first like any toddler, she quickly started interacting with everyone. It was a relief to see her happy. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Her small community on the outskirts of Port Vila is working hard to recover. Rachel’s father and other men have managed to build basic shelters for all seven families, using salvaged materials, scrap timber and metal sheets donated by a local NGO. It will be a long time before life is back to normal for Rachel’s community but it’s clear that they are determined to recover together. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Rachel’s story is one of many. At least 82,000 children like her were affected by Cyclone Pam, which impacted homes, lives and livelihoods for more than half the country’s population. Even in the face of incredible stress and disruption, most children show incredible strength and resilience. Her community is still recovering from the cyclone, but Rachel’s smile is just one sign among many that things are on track. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
UNICEF is working with the Government of Vanuatu to support children and communities as they recover from Cyclone Pam. UNICEF has worked in partnership with the Government of Vanuatu for many years and is supporting affected children and communities to recover from the cyclone, also helping them to prepare for future challenges in one of the world’s most disaster-prone countries.<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuVD_A_2-23nwIFL8YP94jKofXASkF4reUIQV7iaXhP0FiA7js0CkG125d5gtJLKfjWANOpBXA-j1VUWiFoybRipqjDyI0ngsK9l8gw4Neo59xeihi0xSSEuEnAItAdFH_K29a-bfrhCLC/s1600/vila-three-months-later-7.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuVD_A_2-23nwIFL8YP94jKofXASkF4reUIQV7iaXhP0FiA7js0CkG125d5gtJLKfjWANOpBXA-j1VUWiFoybRipqjDyI0ngsK9l8gw4Neo59xeihi0xSSEuEnAItAdFH_K29a-bfrhCLC/s400/vila-three-months-later-7.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Three year old Rachel 3 months on. © UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/McGarry</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In the three months since the cyclone, UNICEF has supplied safe drinking water to more than 46,000 people, and sanitation and hygiene supplies for nearly 70,000 people. Around 17,700 kindergarten and school-aged children have received learning materials and school supplies and more than 300 young children have received micro-nutrient powders to support their growth. More than 4,300 mothers of young children have been supported to ensure that their children receive healthy and nutritious food, and another 4,100 children have had damaged birth certificates reissued, or had their births registered for the first time. </div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-25195367315728917282015-06-11T16:19:00.001-07:002015-06-11T16:19:12.533-07:00Cyclone Pam three months on: A school on the road to recovery<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL-twBxuz7O397fUccztAL8g14GEZacx5XNKo-jpALN0BQDqh_v3uiQDOYVqeGN-qxkz_P87Sko8dYSQL7i23WvFZ2sW16i_Ci1fQERasIxGlWIuT4NDNj8lKccSqt8eq-o1pw6qSHeYC7/s1600/vila-three-months-later-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgL-twBxuz7O397fUccztAL8g14GEZacx5XNKo-jpALN0BQDqh_v3uiQDOYVqeGN-qxkz_P87Sko8dYSQL7i23WvFZ2sW16i_Ci1fQERasIxGlWIuT4NDNj8lKccSqt8eq-o1pw6qSHeYC7/s400/vila-three-months-later-4.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Ellen, a 13 year old student from St Joseph school near Port Vila stands outside the tent <br />that has been her classroom since cyclone Pam destroyed part of the school. If not for the <br />shelter supplied by UNICEF, students would have been sent home on a rotating basis.<br />© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/McGarry </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Three months after Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu with devastating force, Vila North School is a study in contrasts. Children released for break scream with delight as they scamper from tents set up as temporary classrooms, past the destroyed parts of their school. Builders work around them, replacing the roofing on classrooms and rebuilding destroyed facilities as teachers plan their lessons from a temporary office inside a repurposed shipping container. Students and teachers can see the progress around them – but much remains to be done. </div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mr Ronald, the school’s Director, smiles as he surveys the playful chaos around him; fun, laughter and smiles mean his students are well on the road to emotional recovery. It’s been a tough few months for everyone in his community, Cyclone Pam affected more than half of Vanuatu’s population, including 82,000 children, also bringing significant damage to neighbouring Tuvalu, the Solomon Islands and Kiribati. More than half of all primary and secondary schools in the storm’s path were damaged, badly disrupting children’s education. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
When Mr Ronald came to check on his school as soon as the cyclone had passed he couldn’t believe what he found. The administration block had been destroyed altogether, three classrooms and their library had lost their roof and two toilet blocks had been badly damaged. “I didn’t know how we would be able to welcome back our 710 pupils” he recalls.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0wAo3LNsJmkOVPQS-WLgxTuKDNK3x6Hqv5UvUzeHyzcKwBGw4lV4f0uLJUFPXxE1mQ6m29KOam7B9OXFBWKLxr4-9lTJ8CgzQupLX11-0gaR-N9cQs9zSCiYLeT3I3B-_8aai_XFnUbdS/s1600/vila-three-months-later-10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0wAo3LNsJmkOVPQS-WLgxTuKDNK3x6Hqv5UvUzeHyzcKwBGw4lV4f0uLJUFPXxE1mQ6m29KOam7B9OXFBWKLxr4-9lTJ8CgzQupLX11-0gaR-N9cQs9zSCiYLeT3I3B-_8aai_XFnUbdS/s400/vila-three-months-later-10.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Members of the Engineering company of the Vanuatu Mobile<br />Force rebuild a classroom that had been badly damaged by<br />cyclone Pam. Without the assistance of UNICEF and other<br />agencies, the school would have been forced to close.<br />leaving the education of hundreds os students in doubt.<br />© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/McGarry </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="text-align: left;"><br /></span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="text-align: left;">He also wasn’t sure if the children would ever be able to overcome the traumatic experience of the cyclone. When school resumed he and his staff decided to give time to the children to help them to process their experiences during Cyclone Pam. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“It is all we did with the children, for the first week or two; we offered them a safe place to share what they had experienced, hoping it would help them recover from the cyclone”, he says. Vila North School became a place where children could discuss, write and draw about Cyclone Pam, sharing their fears, hopes and anxieties and finding strength in community. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In addition to its buildings, the school, like many others, lost precious learning materials and supplies. UNICEF provided Vila North School with a ‘School-in-a-Box’ supply kit full of educational materials, and two 42m square metre tents for temporary learning spaces. “The children find it fun to have their classroom in a tent. They actually like it!” says Mr Ronald. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The school also received UNICEF tarpaulins to provide temporary shelter for the damaged classrooms and library, and the UNICEF ‘Office-in-a-Box’ (a container filled with basic office furniture) is allowing Mr Ronald and his staff to work and plan for their students’ needs.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3obV8DyaqmHftIXGrZqYKlAKq9Yi_8VeeOCUFh_0_CSrp4_X2pgy_L1ZGq3uWQuw6dr_kLzZkcoO4fWPnjerik_XMiUA_9juIAspEofl54L2WdcuT-7RyCUc4DBKWYtzac-sVVoL_HsFz/s1600/vila-three-months-later-16.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3obV8DyaqmHftIXGrZqYKlAKq9Yi_8VeeOCUFh_0_CSrp4_X2pgy_L1ZGq3uWQuw6dr_kLzZkcoO4fWPnjerik_XMiUA_9juIAspEofl54L2WdcuT-7RyCUc4DBKWYtzac-sVVoL_HsFz/s400/vila-three-months-later-16.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">School students from Vila North school work using materials provided by UNICEF,<br />whose extensive support has made it possible for Vila North to continue<br />providing an education for hundreds of children.<br />© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/McGarry </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mr Ronald was also worried that his students wouldn’t have the supplies they needed for learning; too many of them lost their school supplies in the cyclone. To make sure children weren’t disadvantaged by this, UNICEF also supplied school backpacks full of learning supplies, allowing children to get straight back into their studies, complete with a new blue schoolbag that most seem to wear with pride. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
And while study is important, play is too. UNICEF provided Vila North with recreation kits; big boxes full of games and activities for children to play and relax with friends, supporting their emotional recovery. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Amidst all the positive signs of progress Mr Ronald still winces when he looks at his beloved library. All the books were ruined by the cyclone. “A few generous people have donated some books, but it is unfortunately not enough for a school library”, he says. “It’s one more thing we will be trying to resolve in coming months. There’s a lot left to do but we try to focus on the positives.” </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Overall, Mr Ronald thinks children have come a long way since Cyclone Pam. “The kids are back outside, running around everywhere. It’s a great sign that they are doing better!”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In the three months since Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu, UNICEF has supported 17,700 children in Early Childhood Care and Education Centres and primary schools across the country by supplying temporary classrooms, learning materials and school supplies. Approximately 100 key pre-school teachers, primary school teachers, primary school principals and zone curriculum advisers have also been trained to support the emotional recovery of affected students. </div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-39036654649513153662015-05-23T18:00:00.001-07:002015-05-26T20:32:37.572-07:00The best kind of traffic jam<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyJoHekxcrDIcHECWJh6cXj4D8xBtMP4eFpbNGDyNUvS7MQ5D-hzxX8ui0k-9_kEqJR60dO4prjw3lElaIi2QquRB02bjQxHAsLIY9w9ZVw_mBWl3oIr_O8ZQn-HUbODbipCdsC2heViUZ/s1600/IMG_0186.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiyJoHekxcrDIcHECWJh6cXj4D8xBtMP4eFpbNGDyNUvS7MQ5D-hzxX8ui0k-9_kEqJR60dO4prjw3lElaIi2QquRB02bjQxHAsLIY9w9ZVw_mBWl3oIr_O8ZQn-HUbODbipCdsC2heViUZ/s400/IMG_0186.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"> Long line of pick-up trucks loaded with tents and other education emergency <br />
supplies ready for distribution to 11,000 children in more than 120 <br />
cyclone-affected early childhood centers and primary schools</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Normally I dislike traffic jams, but I couldn't be happier to see this one. It doesn't matter that it’s 30 degrees Celsius here on Tanna Island, Vanuatu and that I’m drenched in sweat; seeing a long line of pick-up trucks loaded with tents and other education emergency supplies ready for distribution to 11,000 children in more than 120 cyclone-affected early childhood centers and primary schools makes my day. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
It wasn't an easy task to create this traffic jam! About one month ago most of these supplies were stored in the UNICEF Supply Division warehouse in Copenhagen, Denmark. Since then, they've travelled by air, land and sea to get here, with the support of so many helping hands every step of the way. When the supplies arrived by boat on Tanna a human chain was formed, safely bringing these critically-important supplies to land for distribution all over the island.<br />
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhddFabL46uRFY0ChISs5yfuM1sx_TN5lDsAhzjbfR8nkbZItysUnnh9UA-Ao_nzM8r3jxFIJ-7Z5X4doFrqKUh5kiFhyMEHnr59zwuuY2mjXklN67KNM9PeOGNBsDLER3rtZWJ3BMMXjEh/s1600/IMG_0050.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhddFabL46uRFY0ChISs5yfuM1sx_TN5lDsAhzjbfR8nkbZItysUnnh9UA-Ao_nzM8r3jxFIJ-7Z5X4doFrqKUh5kiFhyMEHnr59zwuuY2mjXklN67KNM9PeOGNBsDLER3rtZWJ3BMMXjEh/s400/IMG_0050.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">When the supplies arrived by boat on Tanna a human chain was formed, safely bringing<br />
these critically-important supplies to land for distribution all over the island.<br />
<span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">UNICEF Pacific/2015/Molendijk</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
This morning more than 70 head teachers and curriculum advisors became excited students as we opened the first boxes of supplies as part of an orientation at Isangel Primary School. It was a pleasure to see their enthusiasm when they learnt how to set up the tents; temporary spaces designed to help children resume their learning when their classrooms have been damaged or destroyed. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Mrs. Audrey Lesines, the head teacher at Isangel, tells me the children in her school are eager to start learning again, but the destruction caused by Category 5 Super Cyclone Pam left her with no choice but to send them home. The two large tents provided for her school by UNICEF will allow her students to return to their studies and the learning supplies that we’re also orienting teachers on will replace many of the teaching and learning materials lost in the cyclone. Every student in her school will also receive a UNICEF backpack stocked with essential learning supplies, allowing them to get straight back to learning at a time when family resources will be already stretched thin.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ0MYzwgeH8MoFXgSbw0ZMmExWtBkveeEVA-jlQWIBxrXye1UrVLPUaTSAtDPnQ_SOeNjCuFKdkC4ZwIa1D6p-QW3PXR-m6lq1_zEtpk_DzVRMySNqNWoqO4KAKSxQqstcaNfacT3KHZHV/s1600/IMG_0044.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZ0MYzwgeH8MoFXgSbw0ZMmExWtBkveeEVA-jlQWIBxrXye1UrVLPUaTSAtDPnQ_SOeNjCuFKdkC4ZwIa1D6p-QW3PXR-m6lq1_zEtpk_DzVRMySNqNWoqO4KAKSxQqstcaNfacT3KHZHV/s400/IMG_0044.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Temporary spaces designed to help children resume their learning <br />
when their classrooms have been damaged or destroyed.<br />
UNICEF Pacific/2015/Molendijk</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
A few days ago, we had travelled across the island with our Ministry of Education and Training counterparts, visiting more than 10 affected schools to assess the unbelievable damage. When I walked into Tuhu Primary School’s library, I found myself wading through a mass of paper pulp on the ground; before the cyclone they had been textbooks and reading books. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
At the orientation workshop it’s clear that the schools want to waste no time in getting these supplies home and in use. They have used their government school grants to hire pick-up trucks and, by the end of the next, day, almost all the supplies have been collected and whisked back to the waiting schools, students and communities.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
On my way to the airport I see smiling children walking with UNICEF backpacks along the road. We overtake a pick-up truck heavily loaded with education emergency supplies and pass a school that has already started to set up their tents.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLgpkY3rLgAuCH_PZDzgUGBDf1Gk-yUQWS8lB4HCTLtwqXHKJu3Qu5XSl_3vcrq6PoxKfS9PfoafDeD46vfJIfG0AySm0P8ZaoAzIGJV_13uy21AZm4iYyAo2mGkQ-RZIga-gpLlNXB3Bj/s1600/IMG_0059.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLgpkY3rLgAuCH_PZDzgUGBDf1Gk-yUQWS8lB4HCTLtwqXHKJu3Qu5XSl_3vcrq6PoxKfS9PfoafDeD46vfJIfG0AySm0P8ZaoAzIGJV_13uy21AZm4iYyAo2mGkQ-RZIga-gpLlNXB3Bj/s400/IMG_0059.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pick-up truck heavily loaded with education emergency supplies.<br />
UNICEF Pacific/2015/Molendijk</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
Tired but satisfied, I look out of the window of the airplane as we take off and I think about the lovely smiles I have seen over the past days. They have a long way to go in the journey towards recovery from this devastating storm but this feels like an important step along that road. It was an amazing experience to be part of.<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
By Simon Jan Molendijk</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-24681644371322095802015-05-14T19:29:00.000-07:002015-05-31T19:48:26.819-07:00A magic suitcase to bring back hopes and dreams<div style="text-align: justify;">
By Elodie Berthe -14 May 2014</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
After a short drive from the UNICEF office in Port Vila, through streets lined with homes and shops in various stages of post-cyclone reconstruction, we arrive at Fresh Wota Field; a big empty grassland with two goal posts. Small houses of different shapes and colours surround the young people engaged in an intense game of football despite the equally intense heat. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
We park under a tree to escape the heat and wait … and wait … for our scheduled rendezvous. We talk to the football players, make some phone calls and, just when we are about to leave, there they are; fifteen children carrying balls, water, a bright blue UNICEF bag and a big metal box.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcEGvjlmwrYOxM6H2AaryW_EiUaZv4AdrNgtLIeAdPSdHdYP8fGyOLW_HJPtZP6vrR-bmS2IOKworq3F6ZSvjsJUUb_j6YG_Bt3MUbSVunfiTJR5KLqPvRI57mIJmMJlJgc6NnaO63g1NU/s1600/IMG_4123.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcEGvjlmwrYOxM6H2AaryW_EiUaZv4AdrNgtLIeAdPSdHdYP8fGyOLW_HJPtZP6vrR-bmS2IOKworq3F6ZSvjsJUUb_j6YG_Bt3MUbSVunfiTJR5KLqPvRI57mIJmMJlJgc6NnaO63g1NU/s400/IMG_4123.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Children of Fresh Wota, Port Vila, carrying the recreation kits distributed by UNICEF<br />© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Elodie Berthe </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I jump out of the car and introduce myself. They all say hi back, but quickly return to their conversations. I can see that one slightly older girl, 21 year old Vinneth, is taking the lead, writing down names and ages. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
I watch and wait for Vinneth to finish organising the group into teams, which she tells me later “is always hard work!” The group has magically multiplied to 24 children now, their excitement bubbling over as they try to debate whether to play football or volleyball. After a lot of talking, they agree to play football now, and volleyball later, once the court on the other side of the field is free.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The big metal box is then opened, revealing why it often seems like a ‘magic suitcase’ to the children who use it. The magic happens when you look inside and find so many different things; balls, frisbees, football nets, skipping ropes, a whistle, measuring tape, sports vests, t-shirts, caps, books, pens and crayons. All of that, in one metal suitcase! </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEvSq_PSN_I95kMh3WV1i3X7GrdRTeyjA7VDQTrV5cQRJlikvjfxfzYJ_MhyphenhyphenZg9Qc33E3ysoivd07Ms-z9ENW5P5t-_0RfdT8keXX7eWWy4YS9AmzYOSVNNddZSVW6GtUGoYYJCMNQeUmA/s1600/IMG_4084.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEvSq_PSN_I95kMh3WV1i3X7GrdRTeyjA7VDQTrV5cQRJlikvjfxfzYJ_MhyphenhyphenZg9Qc33E3ysoivd07Ms-z9ENW5P5t-_0RfdT8keXX7eWWy4YS9AmzYOSVNNddZSVW6GtUGoYYJCMNQeUmA/s400/IMG_4084.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The metal box turning into a ‘magic suitcase’.<br />© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Elodie Berthe </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam hit Vanuatu nine weeks ago now, but the country is still recovering. Footballs, drawings and games might not appear as useful in an emergency response as clearing roads and rebuilding houses but these items are actually incredibly important for the children who have experienced a stressful disaster.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
UNICEF’s ‘magic suitcases’ (officially known as Recreation Kits) are packed with all types of recreation equipment, providing young people, who have survived the stress of a disaster and may have lost everything they own, with some respite, fun, hope and a feeling of normality.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The whistle is blown and the kids start playing football. With everyone distracted, I can now talk to Vinneth. With a bright smile and a little jewel on to her front tooth she tells me her English isn’t very good, but she gives it a go anyway. Vinneth and her mother were trained last month to be facilitators by UNICEF, Save the Children Australia and UNFPA, as part of UNICEF’s psychosocial support programme. A facilitator has the big task of coordinating children, from early childhood to adolescent years, to play in a safe environment so they put the stress of Cyclone Pam aside and begin moving forward. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeATxzsKBFrLKm9DsFFIfw4wlSd7niBVp2tNleLRySyqaF69j2mJrni94fPVb6acZJ0IdiLJFxoZmyeyIVLLCDNUUlHRDyz5U5RR1w6ZnfuazZLumdi9s6Yu81jzlIaKpyxD-IHXgudt6f/s1600/IMG_4102.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjeATxzsKBFrLKm9DsFFIfw4wlSd7niBVp2tNleLRySyqaF69j2mJrni94fPVb6acZJ0IdiLJFxoZmyeyIVLLCDNUUlHRDyz5U5RR1w6ZnfuazZLumdi9s6Yu81jzlIaKpyxD-IHXgudt6f/s400/IMG_4102.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Vinneth was trained last month to be facilitators by UNICEF, Save the Children Australia <br />and UNFPA, as part of UNICEF’s psychosocial support programme.<br />© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Elodie Berthe </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Vinneth explains that playing helps children take their mind off the cyclone. It also helps them to stay away from harmful coping mechanisms, such as cigarettes, alcohol and violence. When I ask if she has seen a change in the children’s behaviour in the past month, she answers positively. She shares that some children were reluctant to play at first, but a few weeks later became confident playing, and participated in all the activities with the other kids. She strongly believes that play is helping children to recover. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsy5OxUmKpcw9UvUq8dQqusuUplUJ44SnRrBJqeMs-4txAjGrEJyioXUMGQGf_VICybMn0hcyWQ4y5KDfoFDFJjmCMw9d-CPru99L_Yy56_WftlLLW-30kwJlFhsQQXo1LlKvCUhuRQBp-/s1600/IMG_4095.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsy5OxUmKpcw9UvUq8dQqusuUplUJ44SnRrBJqeMs-4txAjGrEJyioXUMGQGf_VICybMn0hcyWQ4y5KDfoFDFJjmCMw9d-CPru99L_Yy56_WftlLLW-30kwJlFhsQQXo1LlKvCUhuRQBp-/s320/IMG_4095.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Children playing football –a way for children to cope with the effect of Tropical Cyclone Pam<br />© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Elodie Berthe</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Vinneth is a natural. She was doing this type of work before the cyclone through a faith-based programme where she coordinated children to play, so she is used to dealing with twenty-four children running around with lots of energy. She explains that with UNICEF’s recreation kit she has been able to improve what she was doing. The many different types of sports equipment have helped her develop the existing programme she was running prior to Cyclone Pam. Besides addressing through sports psychosocial distress experienced by children, Vinneth now also spreads simple messages such respect for their peer boys & girls, informing parents where they will be going and when they will return. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The ball comes close to us and almost hits me. We laugh and I can see she is happy to see the kids play and enjoy themselves. It is time for me to let her do her job, which she does with passion. I chat with a few other kids who tell me they love playing sports. They still don’t really agree on which sport they prefer, but it doesn’t seem to matter too much to them, as long as they get to play. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vf_Nos7xx9KGx4n-t1v-Oo9Njyj1vuTU_oJ1xwTdC2ntdbaqlbZqPEwXOAaD9rjvhfuf_8BMJpjad7gfnU0Sz7d7peJTmjT_3chjVHT94GvQ1Dy28Zcjwqy74Dn6hXysHCpUOXh35BGa/s1600/IMG_4110.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1vf_Nos7xx9KGx4n-t1v-Oo9Njyj1vuTU_oJ1xwTdC2ntdbaqlbZqPEwXOAaD9rjvhfuf_8BMJpjad7gfnU0Sz7d7peJTmjT_3chjVHT94GvQ1Dy28Zcjwqy74Dn6hXysHCpUOXh35BGa/s400/IMG_4110.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Children of Fresh Wota Community are proudly standing next<br /> to their ‘magic suitcase’. © UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Elodie Berthe</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-84069487937228713652015-04-15T22:43:00.000-07:002015-05-03T22:47:26.630-07:00UNICEF overcomes huge logistical challenges to get life-saving aid to Vanuatu<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6arZm4TDyBwBdiGO2IoBDsMH_WijzHh0Xv_YGxkhs0fEJk0wQcNBXqevEHHw7bb-vHkH-NCxkBs3m4YZHVS7fy8imLvfewXQNGvT7UbvR6V66ZWvSOsYiQfS5JCr02kPpAMr45LcUoOr6/s1600/vila-unicef-cargo-2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6arZm4TDyBwBdiGO2IoBDsMH_WijzHh0Xv_YGxkhs0fEJk0wQcNBXqevEHHw7bb-vHkH-NCxkBs3m4YZHVS7fy8imLvfewXQNGvT7UbvR6V66ZWvSOsYiQfS5JCr02kPpAMr45LcUoOr6/s400/vila-unicef-cargo-2.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Warehouse workers erecting a temporary storage facility to store supplies UNICEF received <br />
from a 100 metric tonne shipment that arrived in Port Vila recently. © UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/<span style="font-size: xx-small; text-align: start;">McGarry</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Port Vila, Vanuatu - It’s all hands on deck as 15 warehouse workers heave, push, lift and carry boxes of emergency supplies that have just arrived in a 40-foot container at the UNICEF ware-house in Port Vila, Vanuatu.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
UNICEF’s emergency responses in support of affected children always include a strong supply component and the response to Cyclone Pam, a Category 5 cyclone that devastated the Pacific Island nation of Vanuatu a month ago, is no exception. Today, 100 metric tonnes of essential emergency supplies have arrived all the way from Copenhagen.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The supplies, in 10 x 40 foot containers, include pre-packed education, water and sanitation (WASH), recreation and emergency health kits that are ideal for emergency situations. Each kit contains a complete set of supplies and instructions for use, so that they can be distributed to out-lying schools, health posts and communities and be ready for immediate use.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“Most of these supplies will be dispatched to affected communities within the next week,” UNICEF warehouse assistant, Karsten Brygov, who was deployed from the UNICEF office in Copenhagen to support the relief efforts in Vanuatu, explains. “We’ve handled a large volume of supplies here. This is the biggest shipment coming to the warehouse but we have also had other UNICEF supplies that have been transferred at the airport directly onto cargo planes and flown to affected areas.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5AOwlF31Pav22UT2hKgRMUFtB-sH3PGQCsOrWs_mv9BSm3YT79Kha1i6LHLajBOB3bAqhAQWkVkkp89MzbGlBS1d8jOI14zOUOMPZdKW2nqN5GDk23nUC13pLc6GW63a6Kb2sg0f6sHXW/s1600/vila-unicef-cargo-6.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5AOwlF31Pav22UT2hKgRMUFtB-sH3PGQCsOrWs_mv9BSm3YT79Kha1i6LHLajBOB3bAqhAQWkVkkp89MzbGlBS1d8jOI14zOUOMPZdKW2nqN5GDk23nUC13pLc6GW63a6Kb2sg0f6sHXW/s400/vila-unicef-cargo-6.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">UNICEF emergency supplies in a 40 foot container that just got delivered to the UNICEF ware house in Port Vila, Vanuatu. This is part of a 100 metric tonne shipment that arrived from Copenhagen in 10 x 40 foot containers.<br /> © UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/McGarry</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The logistics of organising a shipment as large as this are complex, starting as soon as UNICEF’s Supply Division in Copenhagen receives a request from the UNICEF office in Vanuatu.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
As many as 30 additional staff in Copenhagen helped to pack 100 tonnes of supplies in just two days. These were then airlifted on March 30 in a B777 cargo freighter to Noumea, New Caledonia with several stops along the way in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Manila in the Philippines and Brisbane in Australia to pick up additional supplies all destined for Vanuatu.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In Noumea, it took three hours to offload the cargo and twice as much time to repack themin 10 x 40 foot containers. The containers were then delivered to shipping vessel, Capitaine Tasman at Port de Noumea to make the one-day sea journey to Vanuatu.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
After a process spanning nine days and some 20,000 kilometres across six countries, essential items needed for children’s survival and recovery from the traumatic experiences of Cyclone Pam are ready to be distributed to those who need it most. And 15 young men, whose lives and families have also been affected by Cyclone Pam, are working long hours to ensure these items are distributed as quickly as possible.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“It is great working here. Some of our workers here have been badly hit by the cyclone, they don’t have any roof over their heads but they still smile and they still come to work every day. That’s amazing, it touches you down here, right in the heart,” adds Karsten.</div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-19155571250943422452015-04-14T22:54:00.000-07:002015-05-03T22:56:30.659-07:00UNICEF working with partners to deliver essential water and sanitation supplies to cyclone affected families on Ambrym island!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCv0nqdYuxUpf1Oogdb7AXQBFEr5HjVsPDwJqM092BQLt03DmdqbBPipx3Zs0nbArl_k5PpII2CwHmsbbPZNuc3S0iQbKyXIhz8YWUwWNFyYgaiSnRrEPvNmSTJ8Pe5pcHI9iZa-FJ3GKE/s1600/IMG_9983.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCv0nqdYuxUpf1Oogdb7AXQBFEr5HjVsPDwJqM092BQLt03DmdqbBPipx3Zs0nbArl_k5PpII2CwHmsbbPZNuc3S0iQbKyXIhz8YWUwWNFyYgaiSnRrEPvNmSTJ8Pe5pcHI9iZa-FJ3GKE/s400/IMG_9983.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">UNICEF and Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) volunteers loading latrine squat plates to be delivered to communities on Ambrym island who lost their homes in Category 5 Cyclone Pam last month.<br />© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Hing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Port Vila, Vanuatu - UNICEF has partnered with a local NGO in cyclone-affected Vanuatu to deliver vital water and sanitation supplies to 555 households on Ambrym island. With UNICEF’s support, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) is delving water, sanitation and hygiene kits (containing water containers, buckers, soap and water purification tablets), water tanks and latrine squat plates to communities on Ambrym island who lost their homes in Category 5 Cyclone Pam last month.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Although South-East Ambrym (where the supplies will be distributed) wasn’t hit as badly as South Ambrym, community access to water has been badly affected.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“These water, sanitation and hygiene kits will be used to help with the hygienic storage of water and the squat plates will help ensure safe access to pit latrines, while the water tanks will store filtered water,” ADRA Country Director, Mark le Roux explains.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrl13ADFZX3LRbg7L4WM-ARtaFghO5cirsHWwmKZVNo4AXr5bwQ9pxym2erK0-V5P2zZsBXXRlTVDg6J7R54oTavj1GPVitutSHIUZ05sfSHZkI3V0r_7gdgtLHljUrgsYfOGDLQ38T-cx/s1600/IMG_9990.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrl13ADFZX3LRbg7L4WM-ARtaFghO5cirsHWwmKZVNo4AXr5bwQ9pxym2erK0-V5P2zZsBXXRlTVDg6J7R54oTavj1GPVitutSHIUZ05sfSHZkI3V0r_7gdgtLHljUrgsYfOGDLQ38T-cx/s400/IMG_9990.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Hing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
ADRA is shipping the water, sanitation and hygiene kits to Ambrym for distribution through localm trunks via ADRA’s existing network. It is also working with UNICEF to distribute water, sanitation and hygiene kits and supply clean water to communities in Efate and Tanna.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
UNICEF’s coordination and logistical support to the WASH cluster in Vanuatu has to date contributed to 23 percent of the affected population (approximately 25,000 people) having access to hygiene kits. An additional 40,000 people are currently being targeted with hygiene kits distribution while a further 3,500 UNICEF water, sanitation and hygiene kits will soon be distributed as part of additional supplies recently arrived from Copenhagen.</div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-40384032753951914932015-04-14T22:26:00.000-07:002015-05-03T22:46:00.863-07:00Educators and creative artists come together with UNICEF’s support to address children’s emotional wellbeing after Cyclone Pam!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlaQhB1AoDBmGQAyFUADlPdoB1LUlPqnqZTxvSepQq07ax_D2ZLQ5d4utcW9tCx4DHkO4Xju-A1NZioTVKTSVyRWun6bn202QVdKBLBJe5lydPMWrEFhfWp-Bb2lpu5DvYElI-i8583eqG/s1600/IMG_24.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlaQhB1AoDBmGQAyFUADlPdoB1LUlPqnqZTxvSepQq07ax_D2ZLQ5d4utcW9tCx4DHkO4Xju-A1NZioTVKTSVyRWun6bn202QVdKBLBJe5lydPMWrEFhfWp-Bb2lpu5DvYElI-i8583eqG/s400/IMG_24.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two of the workshop participants Alex and Angelina in the field doing photo shoots with the children <br />
of Vila East primary school. <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Hing</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Port Vila, Vanuatu - More than 50 professionals from diverse backgrounds in health, education and child protection are now well placed to help meet the psychosocial needs of children distressed by Cyclone Pam and its aftermath.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
A recent weeklong orientation supported by UNICEF and the Government of Vanuatu through its Education, Justice and Health ministries, drew on international research and experience around the world to help childcare professionals and creative artists understand the impact of stress and trauma on young children and learn some of the best practices in nurturing self-confidence and overall healthy development.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The professionals and creative artists also learnt how to produce international standard, holistic and inclusive print communication and learning materials. As part of this, they developed 10 illustrated children’s story books and 12 posters.</div>
<br />
<div>
<b>Two participants share their orientation experiences:</b><br />
<b><br /></b>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6WXEVuZwTLWl0E9AhrUccru_-a0qDJfEAlVq5fFOhvF_ZsUAFQDzPZIXSW_uOPvmqSEQWFTV75_h5p7EvLAUfn8JRz9sxK_rhIKW2x5OsieXS5u6vTY1S5Tu-3qyIZDL63oBbjReyNiSo/s1600/Madlen+third+from+right.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6WXEVuZwTLWl0E9AhrUccru_-a0qDJfEAlVq5fFOhvF_ZsUAFQDzPZIXSW_uOPvmqSEQWFTV75_h5p7EvLAUfn8JRz9sxK_rhIKW2x5OsieXS5u6vTY1S5Tu-3qyIZDL63oBbjReyNiSo/s400/Madlen+third+from+right.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">Madlen third from right taking part in group work activities during the workshop.<br />
© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Hing</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<span id="goog_2116371707"></span><span id="goog_2116371708"></span><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Madlen, the mother of two young girls, hails from Clubhipipique community, a 10-minute drive outside Port Vila. When she was 22, Malden suffered from a spinal infection, which paralysed her limbs.</div>
</div>
<div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Madlen was the only girl in her large family and shoulders many responsibilities, not only to her two children but also to her five brothers. “During the cyclone, I couldn't walk so my brothers had to carry me to higher ground to my brother’s house up on the hill. I felt so helpless. I could only comfort my family through prayer. We prayed and sang songs together. This helped calm my mum down a lot.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“This workshop couldn't have come at a better time, a time when we needed our voice heard. This was my first time to be in such a workshop. Before this workshop I used to run a kindy for the young children in my community. This orientation has given me renewed strength and I'm confident that through the friends I have made and new knowledge gained in this workshop I will be able to reopen my kindy and help the children in my community,” says Madlen.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“I have been through a lot but I can honestly say I am a strong woman and will do as much as I can to help my community by applying what I have learnt about early childhood education and psychosocial support from this workshop.”</div>
</div>
<div>
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8GZAX4Is-w2EJnNsz7og2vst_eSwHEhd-5GLnoqqwL8NZbALJGUb53iuYejtrn57nHMefTkLpfbZyF5kVfSJk_lqzPZ-9o-YwYFyp_c3Cwelkx6ELbABSSG3IzUK8H5miBbyLe9SeQ4TC/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_7Apil_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8GZAX4Is-w2EJnNsz7og2vst_eSwHEhd-5GLnoqqwL8NZbALJGUb53iuYejtrn57nHMefTkLpfbZyF5kVfSJk_lqzPZ-9o-YwYFyp_c3Cwelkx6ELbABSSG3IzUK8H5miBbyLe9SeQ4TC/s400/UNICEF_Vanuatu_7Apil_02.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Alex Ham from Ambrym island in Vanuatu. © UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Sixteen-year-old Alex Ham from Ambrym island in Vanuatu is the youngest participant and thrilled to be part of a group producing for the first time, books and posters in Bislama that address specific psychosocial needs for children and families.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Alex is short in stature, standing about a meter high but that hasn't stopped the aspiring youngster from playing a lead role as the main actor in Vanuatu’s Rainbow Disability Theater Group.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“I am really happy to be in this group because it is giving me new ideas that I can use in our plays. There are many good messages that I am learning about that we can use to educate people and children when we do our plays in communities,” Alex explains through his carer, Rachael.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The Rainbow Disability Theater Group performs plays to create awareness about issues facing people with disabilities.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
At the closing of the orientation, John Nivoa, Director of Policy and Planning commended the group for the communication products they developed:</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“I wish I was a little kid again after looking at all these productions. I wish I had these when I was a little kid. You have the potential. If we work together as a community it will definitely go a long way for the children. You have an important role to build up our community. Continue to hold hand and work together because our children’s lives depend on it”</div>
</div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-63731612403763979292015-04-05T21:48:00.000-07:002015-05-03T21:50:14.761-07:00A cyclone-affected school welcomes children back to class.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfzXudPGa0XMFbPwWl9nM_vI19BaQ308DU_lzfIYh4jIhBG7RxvNEhefiMpLfgYwflbnSduIXTBDp0YL_RlrPw-1wP2VOOPknMmZoIulifmaMwEVoQpqBjlHHBG6uP7CCSgHOusAHdDxtK/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfzXudPGa0XMFbPwWl9nM_vI19BaQ308DU_lzfIYh4jIhBG7RxvNEhefiMpLfgYwflbnSduIXTBDp0YL_RlrPw-1wP2VOOPknMmZoIulifmaMwEVoQpqBjlHHBG6uP7CCSgHOusAHdDxtK/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_01.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dorah James and her eight-year-old son, Daniel at Mele Maat Primary School, Efate Vanuatu. Their home was completely destroyed by Cyclone Pam but Daniel is keen to return to school as soon as possible.<br />© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
First grade student Daniel Jojo (8) is pleased with the finished blue and yellow paint on his face and proudly shows it off to his mother, Dorah James.<br />
<br />
Yellow and blue are the colours of his school, Mele Maat Primary, on Efate Island, Vanuatu. Today, less than three weeks after Category 5 Cyclone Pam badly damaged the school, completely destroying four classrooms, Mele Maat Primary has opened its doors once again to welcome students, teachers and fami-lies. The students have not been to school since Cyclone Pam struck so the school has organized a special event that they hope will help the children to recover emotionally and think of the school as a safe space for them to come, learn and play.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
“I have four children and three of them come to school here. I’m anxious to send them back to school because we lost our home in the cyclone and we see a lot of damage everywhere. Even my Daniel’s class-room is gone so how can he learn, but if I keep my children away from school, it won’t help anything so I want them to come back to school. My children really want to get back to school quickly,” says Daniel’s mother, Dorah.<br />
<br />
Daniel’s family lost their home and most of their belongings to Cyclone Pam and are now living with Dan-iel’s aunt. He is also keen to get back to school. “We don’t have a home and there’s nothing much for me to do at home. I want to come back to school quickly,” Daniel shyly explains in Bislama.<br />
<br />
Dorah and her husband are self-employed, producing handicraft for tourists and sewing clothes to make a living. With their home of the last eight years destroyed, tears roll down Dorah’s cheeks as she explains that she has to put on a brave face for her children every day. “It’s not easy. We have to build our lives all over again but my husband and I have to be strong for our children.”<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo5hmpiQvLWRVTfEQ7RnWqn-gE_2VAwx0lsLLAKSEvnEmRk8HPjncL5UmjKSN9IITGU0FFY8Zo21VVbTvLePOAB_ysalWpdqUT6xKHrq_ofCYOBjfwnuch1_Tsk9V1vrnWTx8om3oOYGia/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_02.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo5hmpiQvLWRVTfEQ7RnWqn-gE_2VAwx0lsLLAKSEvnEmRk8HPjncL5UmjKSN9IITGU0FFY8Zo21VVbTvLePOAB_ysalWpdqUT6xKHrq_ofCYOBjfwnuch1_Tsk9V1vrnWTx8om3oOYGia/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_02.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Eight-year-old Daniel Jojo with a school mate at Mele Maat Primary school in Efate, Vanuatu. Mele Maat Primary School held an event for students, teachers, and parents to encourage students to re-turn to school after Cyclone Pam.<br />© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Mele Maat Primary School Head Teacher, Roy Charles explains that a lot of families are deeply distressed by the cyclone and are scared to send their children back to school. Nearly 30 students who attend this school had their homes completely destroyed and covered in thick mud from the river that flooded homes and destroyed food gardens.<br />
<br />
“So this event we organised is to get the families and community together so we can encourage each other, especially the students so they can return to school next week. I also want to show them that UNICEF gave us tents, school resources and more than 500 new backpacks with school supplies which we will use to help them learn in a sheltered environment once again” Charles explains.<br />
<br />
Even though their smiles mask a lot of stress and anxiety about the future, the parents at the school for the event are happy to see their children laughing and playing again. They’ve all contributed to the suc-cess of this important day by providing face painting activities, games, food and drinks for the children.<br />
<br />
Each family has a story to tell. They weren’t rich to begin with, and now all families have lost belongings, crops and even homes. But today, their focus is on their children, ensuring that all those affected by Cy-clone Pam return to school.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-76376735661248497082015-04-04T21:32:00.000-07:002015-05-03T21:33:20.747-07:00Cyclone-affected family prioritises their children’s education<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjscOPSxayt_04kvdlrmpXOkWmj_vkl0YzGMpA8yJoCeSSqk7mLub4wGBMRXTsIi729KKjnP4waBrS6mgDmOSEbmYDv7ooNe7SssFjAxWE6klbGbDFUI4htOM5DeVgc3nOAqmvRZHjxYv2b/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_03.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjscOPSxayt_04kvdlrmpXOkWmj_vkl0YzGMpA8yJoCeSSqk7mLub4wGBMRXTsIi729KKjnP4waBrS6mgDmOSEbmYDv7ooNe7SssFjAxWE6klbGbDFUI4htOM5DeVgc3nOAqmvRZHjxYv2b/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_03.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Nuku and her eight year old daughter, Evelyn at Mele Maat Primary School. Nuku’s family escaped serious injury 20 minutes before their family home was flooded and completely destroyed.<br />
© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sokhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
It took mother of four, Nuku Kilorie and her family 20 terrifying minutes to reach safety when Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam struck Vanuatu, completely destroying her family home on March 13, 2015.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /><br />
Their dash to safety also meant crossing the Tebokoa River. In normal times the river poses no threat to anyone but, on this night, it burst its banks, sending a chest-height raging torrent of water, debris and coconut trees through the village, destroying everything in its path.<br />
<br />
Nuku fights back tears as she says “We were inside the house and we were not worried about the river because it’s not big and it wasn’t raining heavily. We were praying in the house when the winds came and all of a sudden I heard my brother screaming for us to come out. Then we heard the river breaking the strong bamboo growing on the river banks and saw that the river was now right next to the house. Half of our roof was gone. My children were crying and I thought the river would take us away and we would die”.<br />
<br />
By the time Nuku’s brother had helped her carry her children across the raging river to a large shop where many other people had sought shelter, the river had flooded the shop floor, forcing people had to sit on chairs while waiting for the rain to subside.<br />
<br />
Nuku’s eight-year-old daughter, Evelyn, a fourth grader who attends Mele Maat Primary school along with her brothers, was devastated the next morning to discover that her school books were buried in thick mud from the river which had flooded their home and destroyed all their possessions. The cyclone also destroyed four of the school’s classrooms.<br />
<br />
“Evelyn didn’t want to go to school when they announced school was starting again. My children cried because they didn’t have their books and they were also frightened because Cyclone Pam destroyed the classrooms at her school. But education is important so I told my husband to borrow some money to buy books for the children so they can go back to school,” Nuku adds.<br />
<br />
Nuku’s husband doesn’t have to borrow money to buy school supplies for his children. Evelyn and her two brothers will each receive a school back pack with essential supplies such as books, pens, pencil, rul-er, eraser and crayons as part of UNICEF’s support to ensure children return quickly to school after the disaster. UNICEF has supplied the school with one for each of its 570 students, in addition to four class-room tents and ‘school in a box’ resource packs.<br />
<br />
When Nuku is told her husband doesn’t have to borrow any money because her children will get the es-sential supplies they need for school her tears return for a different, happier, reason.<br />
<br />
“I am very happy and want to thank UNICEF for helping our children. I was scared for my children to go back to school when I saw the damage caused by the cyclone and wondered how the children would learn with no classrooms and books. How are we going to start a new life. But education is important for my children and I want them to start school again.”UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-71479837941587269472015-03-31T22:13:00.000-07:002015-03-31T22:38:06.677-07:00Children go back to school in Vanuatu<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5gNJydshC5AwvjLKUiEkUg71bUkoBpPlejbEgaxn8Idfqg-MlnBBZQ5YI_sPZF6WdNhFMXOhBqil01i9xPtIUGQ4fvWI85Ajvgip5J9AI2a55R8jGEJqCTqOtqWetny3M-H-wRvJUMek/s400/UNICEF_Vanuatu_95.jpg" height="265" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">Pupils sit inside a UNICEF tent, being used as a temporary school</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">structure © UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sorkhin</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After a disturbing event like Cyclone Pam it's important to get children back to learning and playing as soon as possible. Unfortunately, many of the schools in Vanuatu were heavily damaged and will take months to rebuild. But, thanks to UNICEF's support, pupils from St Joseph's College and Vila East Primary school were able to get back to school yesterday.<br />
<div>
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs4HT3fE3Rpb_afL6PzqpNqGB0iBTX26zmPZkgEQTg2fHz5zVNqwfptb4Rea9FqDcJhurRwWvwTbvWIzBTbDQWXPhLg6Bf68doq3JIDYMYXIF8z4RBqrE0YMzvz_JHo22PSSt_215Jc-c/s400/Ellen.jpg" height="266" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">Ellen, 12 © UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sorkhin</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
"When we got to the garden after the storm we saw the birds were all dead.<br />
The wind had killed them."<br />
Ellen, 12, St Joseph's College</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwuJDRpKufmg346kibuRfoeoQNP72QP-2jwWv6wtc0ZBxRS-uiA0KWXsMTNmJHEBXX-924I7Qx7WYsS2rqLbBbwdUYycBLV_kmMLYmSMSSIHOD36To-E3FhamW649Jkxsh24_MGRM8Soc/s400/Damasen.jpg" height="266" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">Damasen, 11 © UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sorkhin</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
"We had nowhere to sleep, nowhere to cook. I came to see the school... </div>
<div>
there was no school and I felt no good." Damasen, 11, St Joseph's College</div>
</div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Back to school at last</b></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
To get children back to school, UNICEF provided a spacious tent to act as a temporary school shelter. Now, Aldo, Ellen and Damasen and all their friends are back at school.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuXPsgdzhScNEOjnXAAF-G11N1kWV3BiLYFj94VRrNV9FUOkuYkl1rsnASQWDR_1rztY7CcrctAJuW7F4vnW8EIhT9WLz2vOCrchANcolrwKzs6HGsJx67mViympgiX4SaXMRFFo6im5Q/s400/UNICEF_Vanuatu_92.jpg" height="266" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">Children get back to school in a UNICEF tent </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sorkhin</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
They are able to start learning, start socialising, and start putting the events of Cyclone Pam behind them.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilXEj4d6Y8Di5aKQUPJik2mdopPIyMf3WeKbU49CXxXRTQOKCwoGHTNX94w2o9EnH5ht91J8F0AP8kD5hLka59GwFs8Fpq5cBCpOQxt2HUayDmtjgid9BAKNFkxx582Rqyelx5PypTWfw/s400/Aldo.jpg" height="266" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Aldo, 12 © UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sorkhin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: center;">
"Thank you for giving us this tent. Thank you very much!"</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Aldo, 12, St Joseph's College</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4QHbzWigR_TLd_y8cdZQ5_8cH-84ui8bkwuQ18tedW5wbYRqnd2vCqUCvAxdSeIAHPhbxdsO_M92YLFeVt7-qnn_fmN7bcjaKfbEtUvBDbBy5o4RZ8eAzG8wygYABAPiKHqzKgViyNMg/s400/vila-st-joseph-school-7.jpg" height="266" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">Pupils stand outside their new classroom </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sorkhin</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
Students of Vila East Primary school also received new schoolbags filled with school supplies, many of which were lost during the cyclone. </div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJWP1j3Xq9c3Eu4e_vLubP-ZLXzYzKJtE87DwXd6Wtt0_ozwSareXLh1QjLxIbFUJ2vsIhw33xH9jT63ZY218seZh3c7ARfqxw3GGmC49S6sQrYCfELmyjR2Ya0R0pnXyvzCLp076KW1w/s400/UNICEF_Vanuatu_47.jpg" height="266" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">Children proudly hold their new school bags </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sorkhin</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
The school received a tent from UNICEF, allowing children to get back to class while their old schools are being repaired.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3cTz_KhmUZycohlwFv9ZcygtAcV5D3L_Jnd72v5sZoSBvYxVy8iTYz0WDebwS_Z497ZjJpdN5nFuIfZsGfb8sxZHw91dM1bzl-d63wdU11RKlQCuYga57jTuC0yQ6ptUye_kD-076g0k/s400/UNICEF_Vanuatu_57.jpg" height="266" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="400" /></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">Vila East Primary School also received a tent to act as a</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">temporary classroom </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5600004196167px; line-height: 14.7840003967285px;">© UNICEF PACIFIC/2015/Sorkhin</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div>
Support our efforts to get children back to school in Vanuatu:</div>
<div>
<a href="http://www.supportunicef.org/cyclonedonate">www.supportunicef.org/cyclonedonate</a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
</div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-61824505659659929882015-03-30T15:10:00.000-07:002015-03-30T16:14:12.099-07:00A father prioritises his daughter’s education amidst the destruction<div class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8sXaaKj-o2UdutRvfwdYI4uzEHfOqcy4gh78YvTBXjRBvRYwAp6Yu5Mr8dD5ABKo-29seP9M257tgNbXhT7CChWj-dxMSc97acCA_YY3ge17bTinnL9TmDkxSTy2A3Avq8ygVFZ5ogBdQ/s1600/IMG_9225.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8sXaaKj-o2UdutRvfwdYI4uzEHfOqcy4gh78YvTBXjRBvRYwAp6Yu5Mr8dD5ABKo-29seP9M257tgNbXhT7CChWj-dxMSc97acCA_YY3ge17bTinnL9TmDkxSTy2A3Avq8ygVFZ5ogBdQ/s1600/IMG_9225.JPG" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Story of 10 year old Joana from Black Sand area on her experiences when TC Pam hit Port Vila and <span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">how she and her family fled to her aunty’s house for safety. Her father, Edward, says that despite losing their home and their crops and not having enough money, his priority as a father is to get his children educated. </span><span style="font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">UNICEF Pacific/2015/Further Arts</span></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<span lang="EN-US">Edward Bani understands sacrifice. He supports his family in Black Sand, one of Port Vila’s poorest communities, by working as a labourer building roads on Tanna Island, a boat journey of several days from Vanuatu’s capital. He was there when Cyclone Pam, an unprecedented Category 5 tropical cyclone, hit Vanuatu, bringing absolute destruction and affecting more than half the country’s population on 22 islands. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">Telecommunications on Tanna Island were cut off for more than a week and he was desperate to get home to check on his family. Frantic with worry he went to Tanna airport and, after some time, managed to get a seat on a flight back to Port Vila with a NGO. He went straight to Black Sand and was reunited with his family. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">“I was so relieved to see my children Susian (1), Joana (10), Fred (18) and my wife. We all cried when we were reunited. I was so relieved. But then I saw the house. There was nothing left. Our crops had gone and there was no power on, even now it’s still not on.” <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span lang="EN-US"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;">
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgECj-ans31bbukKZtrN_6fROme_Yaep9EsVqJa8xmuX9hUqE8Olrm57kqhBILUwo0GjKNggchgYsf1VpFgv69rlhBCqMmln6tTlZuD39IyQRUhee16fJPURLLZi7pOtxMfxwIJxSHNCr3L/s1600/IMG_92255.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgECj-ans31bbukKZtrN_6fROme_Yaep9EsVqJa8xmuX9hUqE8Olrm57kqhBILUwo0GjKNggchgYsf1VpFgv69rlhBCqMmln6tTlZuD39IyQRUhee16fJPURLLZi7pOtxMfxwIJxSHNCr3L/s1600/IMG_92255.JPG" height="254" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joana, 10 year old girl from Black Sand area in Port Vila<br />
UNICEF Pacific/2015/Further Arts</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">“We have moved into the kitchen (a tin shed separate to the house) which we have repaired a little but we have no money to rebuild our home. The only way to get money is to leave my family again and return to Tanna to work. I don’t want to leave them at this time but it’s our only choice. Perhaps they will have to stay in our kitchen for another two months while I earn a little money” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US">Like most people in Vanuatu, Edward and his family depend on their fruit and vegetable gardens as their main source of food. Supermarket supplies are expensive to buy, especially so after the storm. Money is a big problem but he’s quick to add that his daughter Joana will return to her studies as soon her badly-damaged school opens. “I don’t know where we will find the money but it’s my duty as a father to educate her. Education is her future.” </span></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText" style="text-align: justify;">
<span lang="EN-US"><br />
</span></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<span lang="EN-US"><b>Joana, 10 year old girl from Black Sand area in Port Vila tells us her story of how she and her family survived TC Pam.</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<span lang="EN-US"><b><br />
</b></span></div>
<div class="MsoPlainText">
<span lang="EN-US"><b> </b> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/W7QiSn6rVOk" width="550"></iframe>UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-20055018261245932992015-03-29T19:43:00.001-07:002015-03-29T19:46:54.554-07:00600 children can resume their education after UNICEF school supplies reach Cyclone-hit Tongoa Island in Vanuatu<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNxLosRbWcHkBUCOPXQH18ROGREfcAlrqtGvYkhkxgt6uTcCRVCxmRNBMj-Ytndqd3YnORWPaaMjJwsfeUprV-q-krJjio0KPSqdzBsSMGHARTRZhnP0keu_aljsvmSX_R-4qYLXVmKhVX/s1600/20150323_110840.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNxLosRbWcHkBUCOPXQH18ROGREfcAlrqtGvYkhkxgt6uTcCRVCxmRNBMj-Ytndqd3YnORWPaaMjJwsfeUprV-q-krJjio0KPSqdzBsSMGHARTRZhnP0keu_aljsvmSX_R-4qYLXVmKhVX/s1600/20150323_110840.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">UNICEF Education emergency supplies arrive in Tongoa <br />
on the 23rd March. UNICEF Pacific/2015/Kyaw</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
600 children on Tongoa Island, one of the 22 islands in Vanuatu hardest hit by Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam, have received school supplies from UNICEF that will allow them to return to school. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Khin Maung Kyaw is an Education Field Officer from UNICEF Myanmar, who has been deployed to Vanuatu following a request from Vanuatu’s Ministry of Education and through the National Disaster Management Office to assist with the emergency response. Although this is his first time to Vanuatu he is no stranger to emergency repsonse including Cyclone Nargis which badly affected Myanmar in 2008. He tells the story of UNICEF’s efforts to get essential school supplies to children on remote Tongoa Island.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<a name='more'></a><br /></div>
<i></i><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<i><i>“It took me three flights over 24 hours to get to Vanuatu. As soon as I arrived we departed from Port Vila near midnight, travelling by boat with UNICEF school supplies. It took us two days to get there, we had to stop at several other islands on the way to drop off emergency relief supplies. The first night on the boat, the seas were really rough – we didn’t sleep much”. </i></i></div>
<i></i><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<i><i>“We when we arrived at Tongoa Island we had to load the school supplies from our boat into a smaller one and transport them to shore this way. It was not easy but everyone got involved!” </i></i></div>
<i></i><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
<i><i>“There are seven primary schools in Tongoa and one junior secondary school. Almost all were very badly damaged by the cyclone. In some cases the roof was torn off classrooms, allowing the rain and wind to damage everything inside. In one case we saw, the winds were so strong that the only thing left of one of the school buildings was its foundation!” </i></i></div>
<i>
</i>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
As part of immediate assistance to Tongoa’s children who are now out of school, UNICEF has provided tents, backpacks with basic back-to-school supplies, ‘School in a Box’ kits (sufficient supplies to restart classes under schools can be repaired), Early Childhood Development Kits and Recreational Kits. </div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglrpA7TmrQUcXyGvSwitqVOWeiHAjR6gDj5fqriSj7U6c4A4RZTb3sLV_i-Wrk4i6Y-yL4vVzCjaHHWr5JQ9uRy0mXlkenBXbWIjjCvfdV_rfzbIL9WjhILnnrqgxhj1y60V4SW8nUFqWg/s1600/20150325_115935.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglrpA7TmrQUcXyGvSwitqVOWeiHAjR6gDj5fqriSj7U6c4A4RZTb3sLV_i-Wrk4i6Y-yL4vVzCjaHHWr5JQ9uRy0mXlkenBXbWIjjCvfdV_rfzbIL9WjhILnnrqgxhj1y60V4SW8nUFqWg/s1600/20150325_115935.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: left;">A concrete pad is all that remains of a classroom'<br />
completely destroyed by Cyclone Pam.<br />
UNICEF Pacific/2015/Kyaw </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
Members of the community came together and helped to set up the tents for the school children. “I met with the Island’s Administrator, as well as villagers, community members and school Principals from five different schools who came together for the children of Tongoa,” Khin Maung Kyaw added.</div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<i>“A group of ladies also approached us and were so thankful to UNICEF for bringing the children these education supplies that will help their children start back at school again.” </i></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
The children of Tongoa are very excited about the new backpacks that they will receive on Monday, when school begins again in the new ‘School in a box’ tents. Although they will be having their classes in the temporary shelter provided by UNICEF, they will be able to get back into a routine again after TC Pam disrupted their young lives, supporting their emotional recovery, keeping them safe from harm and supporting their continued learning at a difficult time. </div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<b>Supplies delivered to Tongoa Island included: </b></div>
</div>
<div>
<ul>
<li style="text-align: left;">7x tents that can each accommodate 40 students </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">500x back packs each with basic back to school supplies</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">3x School in a box for three schools </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">5x Early Childhood Development kits for the EC centers that were damaged </li>
<li style="text-align: left;">7x Recreation kits </li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixhpc2k1qhswcr1BwjjxwqXF35oijCWpEn28_lkCnrMfE-K1WoL7mehkOGA5dHANxBf2Ck5KW6PPYP4LaKVq3GANftIAYAKW8EIbGMYk4nplv64bloH8vpjR2U-ds3bxma-riW6-hVGl5t/s1600/20150325_121143.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixhpc2k1qhswcr1BwjjxwqXF35oijCWpEn28_lkCnrMfE-K1WoL7mehkOGA5dHANxBf2Ck5KW6PPYP4LaKVq3GANftIAYAKW8EIbGMYk4nplv64bloH8vpjR2U-ds3bxma-riW6-hVGl5t/s1600/20150325_121143.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">TC Pam did not spare the library of Ere Primary School in Lumbukuti, <br />
Tongoa Island which was badly damaged, ruining precious reading materials <br />
needed for students. UNICEF Pacific/2015/Kyaw</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
</div>
UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4370928024650921018.post-42860481182372636442015-03-26T23:39:00.001-07:002015-03-26T23:39:25.640-07:00Cyclone Pam affects everyone in the family<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTPluY04qollwCBF8EbwgYI03yvpBW8NM93JptVx8r7av0Z_mMwKHmA2ZLgJ6f8tH9PiagJPBiAWswCwyZ2H4lla05WPnlrZZ7N_hqk1LL9A1gjJvL2-S4Hl8KWUIKnDLRyJ_Uvbe1hNnX/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_44.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTPluY04qollwCBF8EbwgYI03yvpBW8NM93JptVx8r7av0Z_mMwKHmA2ZLgJ6f8tH9PiagJPBiAWswCwyZ2H4lla05WPnlrZZ7N_hqk1LL9A1gjJvL2-S4Hl8KWUIKnDLRyJ_Uvbe1hNnX/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_44.jpg" height="265" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">L-R. Joyleen, Nathan and Lawrence in the health clinic where they sheltered from Cyclone Pam with five other families. One family is still sheltering there after their home was completely destroyed. UNICEF/2015/Sohkin </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Joyleen (16) comforts her little brother Nathan (4) as he recovers from the brief shock of a potentially life-saving measles vaccine injection. The tears soon disappear and he is quickly back to his curious and social self. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The community health centre, one of the few buildings on Ifira Island to survive the full force of Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Pam, is crowded with parents, siblings and grandparents bringing their young children between 6 months and 5 years of age for measles vaccinations, deworming tablets and Vitamin A pills. Vanuatu was facing a measles outbreak before the cyclone hit so UNICEF prioritised support to Vanuatu’s Ministry of Health in the days after the storm, launching a campaign to immunise 10,000 children under the age of five years in just 10 days. It’s Day 8 and the teams of vaccinators have already reached 7,500 vulnerable children who will now face one less risk as families who have lost their homes shelter together with friends, family and neighbours. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Joyleen and her sister Lawrence (11) should be at school, but both schools have been affected by the Cyclone. Lawrence hopes to return to her school in a few weeks’ time but Joyleen, a volleyball enthusiast who is studying hard for important year-end exams has at least two months to go before her badly-damaged school reopens. </div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“I am worried about my exams but we can’t go to school so I’m just trying to study from the books we managed to save” Joyleen says as she bounces Nathan in her arms. “This cyclone has affected everything in my life. It’s affected our home, our family and I haven’t seen any of my friends since the storm.” </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLoA0Buf_HGkV1gzNLA3gawn2c1p3oi9i65dNtnG1e86hRXt_6dS72N-cYudRCbYgupTIfpXxCcPTdZGYkzb4iBvNkVDWIlPXWycMbyANdvGxDGAmxCVJHBTn1hypsRPaCoG32sh71SBvv/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_33.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLoA0Buf_HGkV1gzNLA3gawn2c1p3oi9i65dNtnG1e86hRXt_6dS72N-cYudRCbYgupTIfpXxCcPTdZGYkzb4iBvNkVDWIlPXWycMbyANdvGxDGAmxCVJHBTn1hypsRPaCoG32sh71SBvv/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_33.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption">L-R. Joyleen, Nathan and Lawrence in the health clinic where they sheltered from Cyclone Pam with five other families. One family is still sheltering there after their home was completely destroyed. UNICEF/2015/Sohkin</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Their mother Touliu is pensive as she recalls the storm. “Our home is right on the water in the entrance to Port Vila Harbour. We were worried about the strength of our home so we moved our children to this small health clinic. They sheltered here with five other families and my husband and I stayed at the house. It was the biggest storm I’ve ever been in. The children were very scared and my youngest is now frightened of the wind and dark.” </div>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></h4>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
“We lost the kitchen and everything in it – but, most importantly, our crops have been destroyed. We need these for our food, it’s too expensive to buy food at the supermarket and it costs extra money to take the boat to Port Vila to go shopping. Food is even more expensive now that the storm has destroyed everyone’s crops, and even though we’re trying to replant our crops they won’t be ready for another six to nine months. The water came back on yesterday after two weeks but they say it will take another month for our electricity to come back.”</h4>
<div>
<br /></div>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf0oitB73FWB-My1_rEBrHtCqBfVmmeJRvYE_jYQXkvN7TemIW_PSRXwRlboyJNXIIho0YyAMNMcxEadRG9xA6yMN73Frg7_KGtX7gbpx4K9tUsg26Y6SEyb54YNQ7H-_NC72eA0uNs1Ks/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_50.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgf0oitB73FWB-My1_rEBrHtCqBfVmmeJRvYE_jYQXkvN7TemIW_PSRXwRlboyJNXIIho0YyAMNMcxEadRG9xA6yMN73Frg7_KGtX7gbpx4K9tUsg26Y6SEyb54YNQ7H-_NC72eA0uNs1Ks/s1600/UNICEF_Vanuatu_50.jpg" height="266" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">L-R. Touliu and her daughters Lawrence (11) and Joyleen (16) wait for Nathan (4) to be immunised against measles and given deworming pills and Vitamin A pills at the Ifira Island health clinic. UNICEF is supporting the Ministry of Health to immunise 10,000 children in 10 days in the aftermath of Cyclone Pam. UNICEF/2015/Sohkin<br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
“We live close to the main wharf where the cruise ships normally come in – I sell souvenirs to the tourists and my husband works as a stevedore on the wharf. But there’s no tourists for another month or two so we have too little money to repair the house or buy food.”</h4>
<h4 style="text-align: justify;">
Touliu lowers her voice as she looks towards her children and says “It’s very hard for us to live now, especially for our kids. They see another child with lollies or a treat and we can’t give it to them. We have no work right now so this will take a long time to recover.”</h4>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.supportunicef.org/cyclonedonate"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiu_vUijLLFM0RhiG2XXriJjoMDIuVl89l8XGhgz0oNBRAVD_4bKG6GtZaN359vToMBMQjofaWS2j6-TkzrELeQ11qC0hfGQwfC6bFZHhrxq6-77blNv2Yb0KBR1zlhfb-8dbineQFjBe3M/s1600/FLASH-APPEAL.png" height="245" width="400" /></a></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />UNICEF Pacifichttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08639627585985026899noreply@blogger.com0