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Reaches out.
to a world in need JERSEY OVERSEAS AID COMMISSION ANNUAL REPORT
2 0 1 3
R.97/2014
Front cover photo courtesy of Commissioner P Le Seelleur (Uganda 2014)
Jersey Overseas Aid Commission
Chairman: Senator Paul Routier, MBE, States of Jersey Vice-Chairman: Mrs. Toni Roberts
Commissioners:
Deputy Carolyn Labey , States of Jersey Connétable Michel Le Troquer, States of Jersey Mr. Peter Le Seelleur
Mr. Geoffrey Crill
Executive Officer Administrative Assistant Mrs. Kathryn Filipponi Miss. Karen Nisbet
Les Sirènes
La Croix Crescent
La Rue a Don
Grouville
JERSEY
JE3 9DH
Tel: 01534 484600
Email: kfilipponi.joac@hotmail.com
CONTENTS
Page
3 Chairman's Foreword
5 Financial Summary
6 Audit Risk Review Committee
7 Grant Aid
19 Uganda Report by Commissioner Le Seelleur
29 Disaster Aid
39 Community Work Projects
40 Grants made to Jersey Charities Working Overseas
CHAIRMAN'S FOREWORD
Attending a reception at Buckingham Palace hosted by His Royal Highness Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh K.G.,K.T. Patron of Plan UK
The impact of natural disasters and emergencies arising as a result of conflict often highlights the extent of our Island's sympathy and understanding by the response given to those in desperate need. 1999 Kosovo and the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami remain firmly planted in our minds and in 2013 Typhoon Haiyan was no exception. The typhoon struck the Philippines on 8th November, with winds of over 190mph reported. It was the strongest storm to ever make landfall and one of the most powerful ever recorded causing catastrophic damage across the Philippines, resulting in a massive humanitarian response. According to the Philippine government at the time, an estimated 4.3 million people had been affected by the typhoon with up to 90% of buildings in its path either destroyed or damaged. In addition to initial grants of £150,000 awarded by the Commission, Jersey's Bailiff launched an emergency appeal for further donations. The response was incredible with a further £124,685 raised by the local community, for which the Commission also earmarked an additional £100,000 to match funding raised. This brings the total amount of aid to £374,685.
March 2014 marks the third year since the start of the conflict in Syria and the statistics make sobering reading. During the past three years more than 100,000 people have been killed and 9.3 million remain in need of humanitarian assistance. Around 6.5 million people have fled their homes and are now living in temporary accommodation. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees was quoted as saying in September 2013 "Syria has become the great tragedy of this century – a disgraceful humanitarian calamity with suffering and displacement unparalleled in recent history." The Commission again responded by allocating over £330,000 to this emergency. Currently we await the United Nations to make its "Integrated Food Security Phase Classification" of South Sudan. This is crucial as some areas are already at Level 4 or "emergency". Will the situation worsen to Level 5? Famine. In addition to the Commission supporting this emergency in South Sudan it is also responding to the needs of those internally displaced in neighbouring countries. The Commission is proud that all emergencies are considered the moment they are received. This allows funding to be confirmed and released as soon as possible. Jersey's reputation for such swift action is often commended by its agencies as in almost all cases it reduces further loss of life.
Last year the Audit Risk Review Committee recommended that the Commission review in detail those agencies and programmes which had been allocated three year grant funding. This was adopted by the Commission and has been of great benefit with each Commissioner now having an established rapport with the agencies allocated to them, enabling a greater understanding of issues that can arise. It has also resulted in the Commission being regularly updated on each projects progress throughout the year, rather than just reviewing on annual basis. Earlier this year Commissioner Peter Le Seelleur undertook a visit to Uganda where he was able to view at first hand a selection of programmes currently supported by the Commission. Peter's feedback on his visit is featured later in this report.
The Commission supported three community work projects this year to Uganda, Bangladesh and Malawi. As always it remains ever grateful to its sub- Committee for community work projects, who amongst others have volunteered their assistance in the preparation and support of all the groups.
The Commission this year will be holding its annual grant aid meeting in London at Jersey's Government office located at Queens Anne's Gate. It would be remiss of me not to take this opportunity to thank Northern Trust at Canary Wharf who, for the past ten years, has hosted these meetings and looked after the Commission so well.
Many of you may be aware that 2014 sees an election year for Jersey's politicians. Following these elections a newly formed Commission will be established for the next three years. For the past six years that I have served as Chairman, I have been privileged to work with a superb team and I would like to express my thanks for their dedication to the aims of the Commission. Whilst changes may be afoot, rest assured that a degree of continuity will remain with the ongoing terms of two of our non-states Commissioners and the administration support from both our Executive Officer and Administrative Assistant. In the meantime we look forward to considering applications from our agencies for 2015, ensuring that every budgeted penny is spent in accordance with the Commission's strict criteria thus achieving maximum impact.
Senator Paul Routier MBE
2013 INCOME AND EXPENDITURE ACCOUNT
Balance 1st January 7,042 States Grant 9,326,146
Net Expenditure
Grant Aid to Agencies
Disasters and Emergencies Community Work Projects
Local Charities Working Overseas Administration
Bailiff 's Appeal committed funding Balance 31st December
6,942,460 1,808,691 193,947 180,400 92,139 100,000 15,551
9,333,188
A bequest of £135,779 was received by the Commission in 2013. The Commission will allocate this funding in 2014.
AUDIT AND RISK REVIEW COMMITTEE
The purpose of the Committee is to identify and manage any risks to the Commission, in particular ensuring that appropriate financial controls and audit functions are in place and that appropriate risk management processes are followed.
The Committee currently comprises the three non-States members of the Commission (by its constitution, the Committee must be made up of a majority of non-States Commissioners).
During 2013, the Committee:
- Reviewed the travel insurance provisions for the Commission (having particular regard to the volunteers on Community Work Projects);
- Revised the contracts of employment of the Executive Officer and the Administrative Assistant;
- Recommended amendments to the constitution of the Commission for consideration by the States;
- Reviewed the process for the selection of projects to be adopted as Community Work Projects and also the process of selection of volunteers to work on projects. The Committee also revised the constitution of the Sub-Committee of the Commission which administers Community Work Projects. The amendments proposed were adopted by the Commission and are now in effect with the support of the Sub-Committee and the project team leaders. The overall effect of the amendments is to provide greater involvement of the Commission in the selecting of projects, greater transparency in the selection of volunteers and clearer understanding of the responsibilities of the Sub-Committee in putting forward projects for consideration as Community Work Projects and in the implementation of selected projects;
- Conducted an annual review of the Commission Risk Register to ensure all identified risks are being effectively managed. The Committee considers that all identified risks are being managed appropriately according to the level of such risk, both in general terms and where specific concerns have arisen. All activities of the Commission are now as a matter of course considered in the context of potential risk, whether that be financial, physical or reputational.
Three Year Programmes
GRANTS VOTED FOR PROJECTS COMMENCING 2013 DUE FOR COMPLETION END OF 2015
BURKINA FASO
ACORD Development of the local milk sector £249,524
The goal of this project is to enhance the livelihoods of pastoralist communities in four villages in the Central-South and Central-East regions of Burkina Faso by developing the local milk sector through improved production, collection, processing and marketing of milk and its by-products.
LIBERIA
MISSION AVIATION FELLOWSHIP Enabling basic services for the development of sustainable livelihoods £228,150
The main focus of the project is the urgent need for a Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) service for more than 80 NGO's working amongst the 3.8 million population of Liberia, supporting clean water, sanitation, healthcare, education, agricultural development and food security and sustainable livelihoods.
UNICEF Strengthening healthcare and immunisation services £249,756 The project seeks to provide an improved package of health services to communities living in Maryland County, one of the most marginalised counties in Liberia. Funding will support a community outreach health programme that will deploy 150 mobile health volunteers into communities to administer medication for common childhood illnesses.
NIGER
CONCERN WORLDWIDE Integrated WASH resilience programme £249,999 This project is part of Concern's integrated resilience programme focussing on water, sanitation
nd hygiene and is designed to improve the lives of the most vulnerable in Tahoua Department
THE LEPROSY MISSION Health improvement and food security £234,438 The project aims to work within five communities covering a population of over 2,500 people through the delivery of improved water and sanitation, food security through income generating activities, vocational training, education support and women's literacy.
TOGO
PLAN UK Promoting children's rights to water and sanitation £248,539 Part of a five year programme which was implemented in 2011 supported by the European
Commission this grant, will support boreholes, latrine blocks and drinking water points.
Three Year Programmes
GRANTS VOTED FOR PROJECTS COMMENCING 2013 DUE FOR COMPLETION END OF 2015
ZAMBIA
Homeless International Improved access to sanitation and hygiene £249,990 The project will improve the health and living conditions of slum dwellers in Lusaka, through
innovative and proven ecological sanitation technology and improved hygiene behaviour.
World Vision Keembe Children's education project £250,000
The aim of the project presented is to improve children's access to quality education in the Keembe area, Chibombo District in Zambia and increase the number of children able to obtain functional levels of reading, literacy and basic mathematics.
In addition to the above three year grants funding was also released to agencies for the second and third years of approved three year programmes as outlined in previous annual reports.
GRANTS VOTED DURING 2013 ANGOLA
Tearfund
WASH resettlement project 94,755
BANGLADESH
Care International
Protecting communities from flooding 98,536 Habitat for Humanity
Community based mitigation and preparedness 32,500 Impact Foundation
Expansion of eye care services 28,292 Sense
Improving healthcare and education for the deafblind 52,986 Sightsavers
Cataract surgery and optical correction 27,500
BOLIVIA
Care International
Resilience to drought 30,400
BURKINA FASO
Plan UK
Water and sanitation project 71,186 Self Help Africa
Water and sanitation project 41,654 Treeaid
Women's forest livelihoods 99,400 BURUNDI
Disability for Development Partners
School for the Deaf 9,400
CAMBODIA
Habitat for Humanity
New homes, renovations and livelihoods 32,497 The Cambodia Trust
Cambodian School of Prosthetics and Orthotics 71,343
COLOMBIA
Children of the Andes
Building positive futures for young people at risk 42,550 Preventing child abuse 26,382
DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC CONGO
ACORD
Improving livelihoods of small scale farmers 86,512
ETHIOPIA
Disability for Development Partners
Female resource centre 65,826 Global Care
Preschool upgrading 98,018 Helpage
Potable water for people and livestock (1) 86,528 Potable water for people and livestock (2) 31,992 Orbis
Eliminating blindness 98,479 Tearfund
Borena Zone WASH drilling programme 99,550 UNICEF
Improving water, sanitation in rural areas 20,527 Wateraid
Water, sanitation and hygiene education 100,000
GHANA
Hands Around the World
Misthy Cee development centre 6,800 GUATEMALA
Toybox
Foster care programme 34,069 GUATEMALA/NICARAGUA
Toybox
Practical assistance for street children and those at risk 42,952 KENYA
AbleChildAfrica
Early childhood education centre for disabled children 98,729 Excellent Development
Improved access to water to increase food production 88,961 Sustainable year round water source 83,517 Global Care
Rebuilding of classroom block 94,602 Oxfam
Creating jobs for cleaner cities through recycling 29,329
KENYA
Sense
Vocation skills for deafblind young people 53,030 The Good News Trust
Education, sanitation and access to clean water 99,917 Migwa primary school 39,728
LESOTHO
Riders for Health
Enabling sustained delivery of public healthcare services 73,576
MALAWI
Everychild
Improving education and livelihoods 66,318 Homeless International
Access to sanitation and hygiene 16,443 Practical Action
Energy access accelerator 88,447 Sightsavers
Elimination of blinding trachoma 93,187 UNICEF
Improving education 94,198
MALI
Oxfam
Improving nutrition for women and children 97,165 Treeaid
Establishing local trade for shea butter 32,500
MOZAMBIQUE
ACORD
Improving access to safe water 73,788
MYANMAR
HART
Health and Hope community health programme 99,220 World Vision
Improving livelihood opportunities for minority groups 78,652
NEPAL
The Leprosy Mission
Leprosy related reconstructive surgery 44,462
NIGER
Cure International
Medical care for children 100,000 World Vision
Improving access and quality of vocational training 98,956
NIGERIA
The Leprosy Mission
Chanchaga orthopaedic workshop 57,058 RWANDA
Send a Cow
Reducing malnutrition and improving livelihoods 94,617
SIERRA LEONE
British Red Cross
Community animation and peace support 55,460 Plan UK
Education for vulnerable and marginalised children 98,086 Sound Seekers
Target paediatric hearing screening 99,000
SOUTH SUDAN
UNICEF
Supporting maternal health wards 99,990
TANZANIA
AbleChildAfrica
Income generation to support inclusive education 68,514 Basic Needs
Marketing of chicken meat 15,083 Impact Foundation
Enhancing maternal healthcare 97,619 International Childcare Trust
Income generation for emergency shelter 39,764 MAF
Avionics Upgrade – two Cessna 208 caravans 100,000 Opportunity
Creating sustainable livelihoods for poor rural women 74,952 Wateraid
Improving water supply facilities and water hygiene 32,939
THE GAMBIA
Childhope
Effective education for former child beggars 99,805
TIMOR LESTE
UNICEF
Improving education for disadvantaged children 99,166 UGANDA
Basic Needs
Livelihood support 15,055 JaipurLimb
Physiotherapy Unit 26,140 Electricity generator for solar energy 16,000 Plan UK
Improving quality education 99,701 Self Help Africa
Increasing food security 25,770 Send a Cow
Food security and nutrition for families 93,557
VARIOUS AFRICAN COUNTRIES
Cure International
Pre and post surgical nourishment 100,000 Mission Aviation Fellowship
Aircraft automated flight 37,243
ZAMBIA
Marie Stopes International
Improving maternal health 100,000 Orbis
Establishing child eye health tertiary facilities 99,261 Oxfam
Copperbelt smallholder agriculture and market support 97,937 Sound Seekers
Embedding and consolidating HARK projects 99,518
ZANZIBAR
Impact Foundation
Widening access to primary ear care 99,136 ZIMBABWE
Practical Action
Sustainable delivery of water services 98,198
2013 Grant Aid One Year Programmes by
Continent
AFRICA 79.5%
ASIA 14.1%
SOUTH AMERICA 6.4%
2013 Grant Aid One Year Programmes by Project Type
EDUCATION 17.9%
HEALTH 29.5%
LIVELIHOODS 32.1%
DISASTER PREPAREDNESS 3.8% WATER AND SANITATION 16.7%
EXTRACTS TAKEN FROM AGENCY'S REPORT
SOUND SEEKERS
Targeted Paediatric Screening, Sierra Leone
In 2013, the Jersey Overseas Aid Commission provided £99,000 to Sound Seekers in support of its targeted paediatric screening project in Sierra Leone. The agency reports that this is now one of its most successful projects and is definitely a first for this country. The project was successfully launched and operated even better than envisaged thanks to a great team in place on the ground working in the audiology unit at St Joseph's School for the Hearing Impaired and Sound Seekers volunteers.
Children under eighteen who met the eligibility criteria for screening were referred to the Loreto Clinic for initial screen (the agency advised that screening will soon commence at Holy Spirit Hospital too). Children who did not pass the screening were referred to St Joseph's for further testing (behavioural and objective). If a child was identified with hearing loss, the type of support offered would depend on the age of child, their level of hearing loss and their acceptance of loss. Efforts are made to stay in touch with families of children who are too young to be enrolled at St Joseph's providing parents with information, sign language tuition if appropriate and hearing aid fitment as early as possible.
The data produced has demonstrated the need for:
- Improved primary ear and hearing care
- Deaf awareness in mainstream schools
- Increased investment in education for deaf children in Sierra Leone
- Continued paediatric screening to reach children with hearing loss as early as possible.
In addition to screening, a daily ear health clinic is being operated using the HARK vehicle which was moved from Freetown to travel to local schools to provide additional ear care. This is one of the significant extra benefits of the project which has delivered more outcomes than anticipated. The number of children being screened is increasing and Sound Seekers are using the data to lobby government and international humanitarian audiologists. Its findings were presented to the Sierra Leone Health Partnership Conference earlier in March and Sound Seekers will also be presenting this project at the Coalition for Global Hearing Health Conference in July, naming JOAC as the funder. This data is the first of its kind.
EXTRACTS TAKEN FROM AGENCY'S REPORT
TREEAID Women's Forest Livelihoods
A grant of £99,400 enabled Treeaid to work with some of the poorest women on earth. It supported poor rural women in Burkina Faso to develop livelihood strategies so that they can lift themselves and their families out of poverty while protecting and improving the environment around them. This was achieved by:
- Supporting income generation: The project supported women to establish sustainable small businesses selling honey and shea products. It also gave them skills to manage forests in a way that makes them eligible for carbon payments. It is anticipated that by the end of the 3 year project, women will have captured 4,800 tonnes of CO2, with a market value of £25,000.
- Improving agricultural opportunities: The project trained women to better manage their fields using agroforestry techniques. These ensure that erosion is prevented and soil quality improved. This in turn improves yields and ensures greater food security and nutrition for women and their families.
- Promoting women's leadership: The project supported the establishment of Burkina Faso's first ever Women's Forest Management Groups. These groups will protect and manage 1,000 hectares, ensuring a sustainable supply of tree products for business, eligibility for carbon credits and a new found confidence among women.
The project is operating over a 3 year period, from January 2013 – December 2015. JOAC has funded 74% of the Year 1 budget for this project the progress outcomes as follows:
Surpassing expectation, nine villages participated by establishing Women's Forest Management Group. Each group comprised of 72 women, the first all female Forest Management Groups in Burkina Faso. Forest mapping has taken place using GPS technology to delimit the areas that each of the 9 groups managed. A considerable amount of time was also spent on the sensitive task of ensuring the Women's Forest Management Groups have the authority to manage the forest areas mapped. This involved obtaining the consent of local and traditional authorities and forest users who may have used these areas for hunting or firewood collection. Thanks to a series of community meetings and meetings with traditional and local authorities permission was been granted.
A Women's Forest Management Group mapping the nearby forest
A total of 675 people participated in agroforestry training over the course of the year; 608 were women. Training was held in 9 villages and shared skills in assisted natural regeneration, such that women are now able to identify and protect tree seedlings in their fields. By helping tree species to regenerate naturally, erosion is prevented, soil quality improved and agricultural yields increased. A further 90 people (63 women and 27 men) were also trained in tree planting.
Wells have been constructed in the villages of Kollo and Tibin, where the two private nurseries are housed. The wells draw on water tables two and three metres below ground respectively and are functioning well. The nurseries are operational and producing tree seedlings and are being run and managed entirely by women. A third nursery at Loungo village, already established thanks to a previous TREE AID project, has also been contributing to the production of seedlings.
40,000 seedlings have been produced by the two nurseries established. These seedlings will be used by the Women's Forest Management Groups to protect community forests and access carbon payments via the Plan Vivo system. Only native species will be planted in protected forests in compliance with the Plan Vivo standards. In addition to these native species, the nurseries also produced some non-native seedlings (e.g. Eucalyptus) for commercial sale. In total 9 seedling species are produced by the nurseries (Acacia Nilotica, Adansonia, Bombax, Eucalyptus, Jatropha, Moringa, Neem, Parkia and Prosopis).
Seedlings ready to be planted out by a women's group.
This project has been very successful in:
- Involving women and communities: Treeaid has far exceeded the number of beneficiaries and the number of communities that the project intended to reach. This is because the women were very eager to protect their forests and learn new skills for income generation and agricultural improvement. The project worked with nine villages rather than the intended six. Over 700 people have benefitted from agroforestry (a huge increase on the 145 planned for) and the overwhelming majority have been women. Nine Women's Forest Management Groups are functioning, with a total of 648 women involved. This is remarkable given that before this project there was no "female only" Forest Management Groups in the country and women struggled to have a say in decisions about forest use.
- Forest management and agroforestry activities: It was decided that Year 1 activities should focus on these areas in order to lay the foundation for income generation activities to follow. Treeaid is proud that it has exceeded its own expectations in all forest management and agroforestry activities.
Going forward the project plans to concentrate on income generation activities, to ensure that outcomes around honey and shea enterprises are met by the end of the project in 2015. A third support mission from BioClimate to complete activities around payments for ecosystem services has also been scheduled for early in 2014.
UGANDA MONITORING VISIT REPORT By Commissioner Peter Le Seelleur
On 23rd January, Commissioner Peter Le Seelleur, accompanied by his wife Lynne, undertook a trip to Uganda to visit and report back on various projects supported by JOAC. Peter reports as follows:
"Upon arrival in Entebbe, the following morning we were greeted at Kajjansi Airstrip by Stephen Forsyth, who is the local director of Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF). The taxi drive to Kajjansi is along an extremely rough road through what can only be described as a slum area however in due course we spotted the big sign for MAF Kajjansi Airstrip and beyond the gates it was a different world!
Stephen Forsyth has worked with MAF for many years and has been the director in Uganda for approximately 8 years. He was kind enough to explain the history of Kajjansi. MAF had been using the airstrip for maintenance, but was unable to fly its services from there. The airstrip was adjacent to Lake Victoria and apparently prone to being very wet. This was understandable given its proximity to the lake, which was clearly visible from the raised departure lounge. Stephen was able to explain that MAF have cambered the runway and put drainage ditches down each side, so that the rain could run off making flooding of the runway unlikely. Evidence of the earning potential of the runway was clear by the number of planes stationed on the ground, some of which did not belong to MAF.
Our flight was in a single engine, single pilot plane which carried 15 passengers plus cargo. It was a shuttle which operated daily flying north, stopping at five airports with its final destination, Juba in South Sudan. Whilst not quite full, every passenger was an NGO, hence the importance of MAF and the airport which provides a vital service to many parts of the communities in African countries. I spoke to two NGO's and
both confirmed that without MAF their ability to operate would be seriously impaired. The project which JOAC had agreed to provide funds for in 2014 will enable MAF to build a bespoke new Head Quarters at Kajjansi and will allow it to close the existing HQ in central Kampala. From experience I know that, at certain times of the day, it can take 1.5 to 2 hours to drive from Kampala to Entebbe (Kajjansi) so I completely understand MAF's desire to do this. In addition to providing for its own operations, the new facility will be partly let to other users of the runway which will provide income to MAF. This and landing fees will subsidise the annual cost of running the airport which is currently in the region of £95,000 per annum.
On the MAF flight from Entebbe to Gulu I sat with Kate O'Connell who is Head of Oxfam in Uganda and based in Kampala. She has worked for Oxfam for many years in various different countries. On arrival at Gulu we drove to Kitgum. The road from Gulu to Kitgum was fairly rough reflecting the fact that no funding for infrastructure seems to make it very far north of Kampala. Kitgum itself is little more than a staging post for those travelling to the National Park in the North East of Uganda. More importantly it is a base for the many NGOs who have regional offices there.
Oxfam had put together a fairly comprehensive programme covering the four days we were with them so my approach was to go through the approved three year programme comparing the various aspects that we were shown of the project, with those presented on the original application. Oxfam had also submitted a revision to its application for change which was received in December 2013, which was also taken into consideration. After meeting staff at the Oxfam office, we spent the afternoon on courtesy visits, firstly to the Kitgum District Local Government offices to meet the regional development officer and then secondly to the Kitgum District Famers Association ("KDFA"). The district development officer was fully appraised of the thrust of Oxfam's project and appeared to be fully sympathetic towards the efforts being made to change and improve agricultural practices in his district. He was articulate, helpful and thankful for the efforts being made by Oxfam and by funders, particularly as he seemed fully conversant with and prepared to accept the short comings of central government when it comes to helping the regions in the north of the country.
The second visit to the KDFA provided information about the project so far and the effects of the collaboration between Oxfam and the KDFA during the first year of the project. According to the KDFA there are 12 sub counties within the two districts which the Oxfam project is seeking to reach. The two districts are Kitgum and Lamwo in which there are about 460,000 people. The Oxfam project aimed to reach 21,600, representing 3,600 households or approximately 5% of the population. According to the KDFA since the project started in April 2013 most of the efforts have been aimed towards training which would reduce the post-harvest losses. This involved providing 1,500 farmers with training and with tarpaulins to improve the dry efficiently of the crops with minimum loss.
Part of the project also involved the training of local unemployed youths at the technical college in the art of blacksmithing to develop and manufacture agricultural machinery such as ploughs, planters etc.
According to the KDFA the activities of the first nine months had led to a cleaner product with a 20% reduction in post-harvest losses. Furthermore harvesting occurred at the correct time and drying techniques had generally improved. Farmers had gained access to better market knowledge through the use of an SMS system which was being developed by Oxfam in Gulu.
Oxfam hoped to convince farmers that their livelihoods would be improved by transferring of some of their effort from a traditional crop to sesame growing which could be worth twice as much at market. The idea of this was that farmers would continue to grow traditional crops by which they would feed themselves but would also grow sesame as a means of generating income allowing them to educate their children and enjoy a better lifestyle.
Day two started with a meeting at the Oxfam office where we met local project co-ordinator Rose Tino Otim. Although the region was stable there was a clear and real concern that the civil wars in the South Sudan and DRC could impact the region.
Oxfam had selected 3,600 or so families to benefit from this project and one of the first things to be established was Collective Marketing Committees or CMCs. Until these were organised each individual farmer had to sell his surplus harvest into the market which almost inevitably meant selling to the larger corporate buyers who would roam the area with the intention of buying small amounts from individual farmers at very low prices. Through the establishment of the co-operative, farmers would be able to bring their crops together to sell in bulk at a better price. Through an app on the SMS system, provided from Gulu by another NGO, but "supported" by Oxfam, they are able to find out exactly what the correct price should be.
Oxfam had built some stores from which the CMCs could operate and we visited two of them. It became obvious that these stores are not being fully used due mainly to farmers in the area having no means of transport. This has resulted in the option of selling to larger buyers visiting with their lorries being more convenient. Another aspect was micro-finance to farmers' groups to help them buy seed and equipment. It would appear that the loans to the CMCs are being given at an interest rate of 10% per annum which compares very favourably with the rate of 36% per annum which would otherwise have been available. Generally speaking any depositors with the bank will receive an interest rate of 1%. Of the six CMCs so far established only two have taken advantage of the bank finance available.
On the morning of the 27th we visited the technical institute and met with the first class of young people who were being put through the Oxfam programme and the Principal of the college. The group's principal lecturer proudly showed us some of the equipment which had been produced by the group. The Oxfam programme takes four months to mirror a normal course at the college which takes two years. Some students felt the training period was insufficient for them to cover all aspects of what was required and felt in addition to a longer training programme it would be beneficial to be given some equipment in order for them to be able to set up in business at the end of their course.
One of the important goals of the Oxfam project was to increase the influence and power of female farmers, by providing them with increased wealth from the growth of sesame seed and also by providing them with the means of processing it themselves into sesame product which commands a higher value and price in the market.
On the last afternoon we visited a group in a fairly remote village where both men and women had been encouraged to work together to gather surplus sesame seed and process it using a motorised grinder which Oxfam had provided. With this grinder they were able to process the sesame seed into paste which they packed and sold for a substantially increased price. However, there was little evidence that any business acumen existed within the group and when asked simple questions like how they calculated the price at which they sold the paste, there was no process of arriving at this, even though they had been trained by Oxfam to do this.
Next we travelled to Gulu and were graciously received by staff from Basic Needs. An early start enabled us to have a full day on the "road" visiting the beneficiaries of a programme supported by JOAC which had helped youths to set up small businesses for unique income generating projects. Basic Needs had also provided a business support facility to encourage the beneficiaries to put training learnt into practice and to implement business plans, even for those who are illiterate. In total 413 youths had submitted either written or oral applications and after three rounds of interviews and one home verification exercise, 37 youths received items. These included cameras, sewing machines, capital for small shops, solar panels, carpentry and building tools to mention just a few. All but one had used their items and earned an income.
Compared to the previous project, which was large and, in many respects impersonal, this project identified individuals in need of support (not just in financial terms) and set about helping them to help themselves whilst supporting them through that process. For a relatively small amount of money there were tangible improvements in peoples' lives which was evidenced by personal testimony.
The next stage of our trip took us to Global Care's compound which was in the suburbs of Soroti. The compound housed amongst other buildings, the day care centre funded by JOAC providing facilities for severely physically handicapped children. Two full-time members of staff, a female occupational therapist and a male physiotherapist run the centre supported by four volunteers.
In Uganda there still remains stigma attached to having a child who has any form of disability, physical or mental. Many children are shut away in usually windowless rooms so that they are not able to be seen by the outside world and so that the family can essential pretend that they do not exist. Culturally this would suggest that there is a curse on the household. Identifying families who have such children is difficult and it is also difficult to persuade them to use the day care centre as, in doing so, there has to be an admission that these children exist. Nevertheless the centre has 10 children
currently using its services of whom we were able to meet seven and the object, or the ultimate goal of the centre, is to rehabilitate the children so that they can be introduced to as normal a life in society as they can.
So far the centre had achieved this for five children who have been "normalised" to such an extent that they have been able to be transferred
to schools appropriate to their physical or learning disabilities. During our few hours with these children we were introduced to the latest two who will soon be leaving school, one little blind girl who has been de-traumatized so that she is now able to go a specialist blind school and one little girl who is unable to speak but who is not deaf has been found a place at a deaf school so that she learn to sign.
We also visited a school established by the founder of Global Care, Ron Newby. He had built this school as his first project in response to his first visit to Uganda when he had witnessed the lack of educational facilities available to most of the children in the country. The schools were still on holiday but one of the teachers lived nearby and came across to introduce herself. The school had two classrooms and a head-teacher's office. It also had some outside classrooms which had been added later and which were essentially thatched roofs on stilts! There was two latrine blocks, one of which had recently been added at Global Care's own expense. Whilst JOAC had not made any contribution to either the building or maintenance to this school, I suspect that a request may be on its way in the very near future for funds to enable the school's extension, given the number of pupils which it now has and which it anticipates will continue to grow in the future.
We then inspected a project which had been previously funded by JOAC and which had involved the drilling of ten bore holes and provision of pumps. The majority of the wells were a two hour drive from where we were but there was one well which was about a 45 minute drive from Soroti which we were taken to see. The reports which JOAC had received at the time from Global Care had suggested that there had been problems in the more far flung areas due to those sites being in different regions or districts but I was assured that all the pumps had been installed and that those local problems had
been overcome.
The well which we visited was still in good working order and was surrounded by about 15 children when we arrived. The children are the water collectors and carriers of the various little villages dotted around and the pump provides a good place for them not only to get water but to socialise and meet each other and generally it would seem have a good time. When news of our presence spread the number of children grew significantly and we enjoyed 30 minutes watching them use the pump to fill their jerry cans and various containers. Whilst the aim of the project had been to establish user groups who would charge a small fee for water collection and use this to maintain the
pumps, in reality this proved too difficult to keep going, and the result of this is that whenever anything does go wrong with the pumps the local community get word to Global Care and Global Care goes to fix it.
I was assured that all 10 pumps are still in good working order and that Global Care visits them at least twice a year for the purposes of maintenance or whenever they receive a call to say that something is not working.
The wells had been constructed using the technology described in the application, that is "people power", but contrary to the application the pumps were sourced in Kampala and not manufactured locally as this had proved unfeasible for a variety of reasons, mainly the availability of materials.
The Commission has supported projects in the village of Ngora for many years and in 2013 I had participated in a community work project myself. Father Robert was kind enough to pick us up from Soroti and transport us to the village of Ngora were we stayed in a shed at the bottom of his garden which was an interesting experience! Various receptions had been arranged for us and it was nice to meet old friends again and observe what had changed since I had been there less than 12 months before.
The nurses accommodation was finished, rendered on the outside, the roof looked substantial and three nurses were occupying the property. The maternity clinic had also been finished to a high quality and the equipment which Ngora Trust subsequently paid for, being the beds and furnishings and the rainwater collection tanks, had been installed and appeared to be working well.
A subsequent visit by Mr Dennis Troy and Mr Dick Richomme had identified that the new facility had not been publicised throughout the parish and therefore was being underutilised. Mr Richomme had brought this to Father Robert's attention and consequently usage had increased. Whilst Lynne and I were there we witnessed two births in the maternity clinic, both born during our stay in Ngora and delivered by the midwives in station. Nevertheless there were only two beds occupied in a facility that houses six antenatal beds and six postnatal beds. When I asked the staff, it appeared that there was still a resistance to using the facility for actually having a baby as there was a charge levied towards consumables equivalent to £1.50. This represented a significant amount of money for most people in the district. The free antenatal care facilities are however well used.
Our next destination was a Cure hospital which specialises in the treatment of hydrocephalus. Father Robert believed that he had 27 children in his parish who were currently suffering from the condition and I agreed that we would talk to the Cure hospital about what might be done. We travelled to Mbale the night before where we met with Helen Frost, Executive Director Cure International UK. Together we were met by Derek Johnson who is the Executive Director of Cure International Uganda who is the only non-Ugandan present at the hospital. Mbale is a relatively large town, it is as rundown as much of the rest of Uganda and the Cure hospital stands out as one establishment that is actually well maintained and properly run in this significant urbanisation.
The hospital was established some years ago as a direct response to the high incidence of hydrocephalus and spina bifida which exists in South Eastern Uganda. It was established in Mbala and not Kampala, because the local authority was more supportive of the creation of the hospital in that town. Set alongside this was the need to persuade some of the country's foremost neurosurgeons to relocate to Mbale from Kampala which has been achieved and the hospital is now fully staffed with four surgeons all of Ugandan origin. The original surgeon was an American who, whilst in Uganda, devised a new and ground breaking method of operating on hydrocephalic children which obviates the need to insert a shunt, as is still used in much of the western world, and the necessary follow up throughout a child's life. The operation takes 45 minutes and assuming all goes well, which it almost invariably does, the child only needs a visit to the hospital twice at 6 and 12 months and then will be fine for the rest of its life. Since these operations were started, the hospital has carried out over 11,000, most of which have been successful and during that time no child has died on the operating table.
We were allowed to "scrub up" and attend an operation. Also observing the operation was a group of four doctors from Belgium who were there to learn how to perform the operation for themselves and who were clearly aware of the advantages that it has over more traditional methods. The hospital was full. We went around the various wards and there was not an empty bed to be seen. There was a steady queue outside the outpatients department throughout the whole day, many of these being others bringing their babies to the hospital for the first time, as its reputation is clearly of a high standard. The philosophy of the hospital is that no one is ever turned away. Whilst the cost of the hydrocephalus operation is 100,000 Ugandan shillings, which not many can afford, all are encouraged to make a contribution on the basis that something is only appreciated if it has cost something. Most will never pay the full amount.
Within the hospital we also saw a limited number of spina bifida affected children and whilst this is incurable, Cure do all they can both medically and surgically to enhance the future prospects of the child. They also provide support for the families, both through counselling and through the provision of wheelchairs etc. The Cure philosophy is in my opinion a good one. As an organisation, it identifies the need and provides a service within its own area of expertise that will make their lives better going forward. In a sense it provides the full package. It enables those who are in its home jurisdictions e.g. the US or the UK, to use their skills on a voluntary basis to help those in need in other countries, it uses donations of a monetary kind to build hospitals to help those where there is a high prevalence of a particular kind of birth abnormality for example Uganda, it develops new methods of treating its targeted illnesses and it shares those new developments with other professionals so that they can more effectively treat their patients in other parts of the world. In my opinion our £250,000 has been well spent.
As a postscript to my visit, I was able to put Father Robert and Derek Johnson in touch with each other and Father Robert has been able to bring all the families of his parish's hydrocephalic children together and Derek Johnson has organised a group of his professionals to travel to Ngora. A support group has been formed, contacts have been re- established with those who have previously been to Mbale and most importantly two previously untreated children have now received the operation.
Moving on from Mbale we headed to Tororo to meet with Plan International. JOAC has provided 3 year funding to PLAN International to enable it to increase hygiene and sanitation throughout the Tororo district and in one particular area, the Oserea Morukebu Parish of Kwapa sub county. In this area of Uganda, it has always been normal for individuals to defecate wherever they happen to be. The programme over 3 years aimed to educate these people in the chosen area that this was not desirable either for them or their neighbours and that the results of them changing their practices would result in more pleasant life with less child mortality and less illnesses amongst the whole population.
We visited a village where the communities welcomed us to a presentation in the true African sense. This lasted two hours and was in the form of speeches, singing and drama and a guided tour. What PLAN has achieved is that it has persuaded those who can, to build toilets. The toilets are simply a hole in the ground with a mud construction around them, but these become the pride and joy of those to whom they belong and therefore open defecation is no longer a problem in the area. Additionally, most have installed a plastic container with water in outside the toilets so that their hands are washed after use.
Following this, we were taken to another community about half an hour away. This one was called Totokidwea Peta Parish, Mukujju sub county. This was a parish where PLAN has not done any direct work and where open defecation is still practiced widely. We were given a tour of one of the settlements near where a presentation took place. PLAN has started to "sensitise" this community as to the benefits of stopping this practice and has made them aware of the results achieved in the first parish. I think that we were taken to see the second parish in order that we had something to compare the effects of their work with and also to demonstrate that PLAN is
committed to continuing to spread the word."
Commissioner P D Le Seelleur
PHILIPPINES - Typhoon Bopha
JOAC awarded Oxfam £30,000 towards the construction of 400 emergency latrines, provision of water kits, the distribution of hygiene kits and cash for work supporting Oxfam's response to 60,000 people following Typhoon Bopha which hit the Philippines in the first week of December 2012.
SYRIA - Refugee Response following Conflict
Escalating violence in Syria saw more than two million children in urgent need of humanitarian assistance as millions of Syrian refugees became displaced in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Iraq. JOAC awarded UNICEF £30,000 towards the provision of essential medicines and winter clothing, Oxfam £30,000 for food, hygiene kits, clean water and sanitation; and British Red Cross £30,000 for blankets, mattresses and family food parcels.
BURMA - Refugee Response following Conflict
In January 2013 crisis point was reached as thousands of people required urgent humanitarian assistance following displacement as a result of the on- going high levels of violence as a result of the government's pressure to bring the Kachin Independence Army and Organisations into Border Guard Forces under Myanmar military command. JOAC awarded Christian Aid £30,000 towards the provision of emergency food and water aid to assist 5,000 people.
MALI - Refugee Response following Conflict
When France launched six air strikes against Islamist camps and mobile forces in Mali in January, 300,000 Malians had to leave their homes and flee to host families and camps. JOAC awarded Christian Aid £30,000 and Oxfam £30,000 towards the provision of emergency water and sanitation, food, blankets tarpaulin, mats, soap and cooking utensils to assist people in the regions of Mopti and Gao.
MOZAMBIQUE - Flooding
JOAC awarded Action Aid £30,000 to provide water and sanitation, shelter, nutrition and support to those affected by the devastation of Cyclone Felleng. The communities in the Limpopo river valley, some 70,000 people were also affected by flooding, of which 55,000 people became temporarily displaced. JOAC awarded Tearfund £30,000 to assist in alleviating the suffering of 450 households representing 2700 beneficiaries through the provision of shelter and food aid; and awarded UNICEF £30,000 for the provision of clean water, food, shelter and hygiene items to a temporary camp in Chokwe district.
MALAWI - Flooding
Malawi experienced continuous rains during the month of January which caused heavy flooding in flood prone districts of the country. This coupled with windy storms experienced in several parts of Thyolo district, destroyed houses and damaged the properties of thousands of households. JOAC awarded Christian Aid £30,000 towards the provision of emergency food and temporary shelter to approximately 4,000 people.
SOUTH SUDAN - Food insecurity
Widespread flooding across Uror County, Jonglei State, South Sudan in August 2012 led to communities in 2013 suffering food insecurity. This affected 21,700 people who lost their primary food source crop. JOAC awarded Tearfund £30,000 towards the provision of emergency food and temporary shelter to approximately 4,000 people.
NIGER - Refugee response following conflict
Niger, still recovering from its 2012 food insecurity crisis, saw a rapid influx of an estimated 50,000 refugees who had crossed the border fleeing the recent conflict in Mali early 2013. JOAC awarded UNICEF £30,000 and Oxfam £30,000 in order that they could provide critical water and sanitation, support the national response to the country's continuing nutrition crisis, prevent cholera outbreaks and provide educational supplies.
BURKINA FASO - Refugee response following conflict
Another country affected by the recent conflict in Mali, JOAC awarded Oxfam £30,000 for the provision of boreholes, latrines, emergency washing areas and rubbish pits, in addition to the distribution of 38,000 hygiene kits within refugee camps.
LEBANON - Refugee response following conflict
At the end of March 2013 it was reported that more than 250,000 refugees had registered in Lebanon, with a further 145,000 pending, following conflict in Syria. JOAC awarded Oxfam £30,000 towards access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene services as well as providing cash for food, rent and other basic items to more than 6,000 families.
JORDAN - Refugee response following conflict
Also affected by conflict in Syria, more than 320,000 refugees had registered in Jordan by the time JOAC received this application. Over half were in the Za'atari camp in the north and a further 55,000 waiting to register. JOAC awarded Oxfam £30,000 towards establishing safe access to water and sanitation including the rehabilitation of water pipes to provide safe access for at least 90,000 people, as well as providing cash grants for food and household essentials.
THAILAND – Fire in Refugee camp
Fire swept through Ban Mae Surin refugee camp, in Mae Hong Son Province, Thailand on 22nd March 2013. Two sections of the camp were completely
destroyed with more than 65% of the camp affected. Most of those living in the camp were ethnic Karens, some 3,500 refugees who, despite political reforms had decided to stay, following their initial move due to civil war in Burma in 1992. JOAC awarded Christian Aid £30,000 to provide emergency food packages and non food items such as blankets, plastic sheeting and cooking utensils.
BANGLADESH - Tornado
JOAC awarded Habitat for Humanity £30,000 to assist approximately 1,000 people with emergency shelter repair kits following a devastating tornado that ripped through 15 rural villages in eastern Bangladesh on 22nd March 2013.
NEPAL – Fire in Refugee camp
Fire broke out at Govindapur on 26th March 2013 and, in a separate incident, at Bagduwa on 2nd April 2013. Many families had already been displaced by the first incident, with the blaze gutting approximately 90 huts, cattle sheds and concrete houses. More than 210 individuals lost all their possessions in the second incident and 42 families were made homeless. JOAC awarded Habitat for Humanity £19,101 to provide eighty transitional shelters.
KENYA - Flooding and Landslides
Severe flooding caused serious damage to crops, infrastructure and property, including homes, vital shelters and facilities in the Homo Bay district of western Kenya. JOAC awarded Plan UK £30,000 to provide clean water, sanitation, hygiene and health support and continued education in affected areas.
BANGLADESH - Cyclone
On the 16th May 2013, Cyclone Mahasen struck the South of Bangladesh causing hundreds of thousands of people to leave their homes with only the belongings they could carry. Over a million people were ordered to evacuate low-lying areas in Bangladesh and thousands lost homes and personal affects. JOAC awarded Christian Aid £30,000 to provide food, blankets and shelter, alongside clean water, hygiene and sanitation kits for around 6,750 people.
NIGER - Cholera outbreak
Children across Niger and neighbouring Mali faced a cholera outbreak as over 300 cases had been reported in villages and refugee camps bordering the Niger river, believed to be the possible source of contamination. JOAC awarded UNICEF £30,000 to provide clean water, sanitation, hygiene supplies to health centres and training of community health workers.
CHAD - Refugee response
Over 50,000 refugees had settled in the small town of Tissi in Chad since March 2013, due to the country being situated at the junction of three humanitarian crises, Dafur, Central African Republic and the Sahel area. Refugees and returnees were in desperate need of water, hygiene, shelter health and nutrition services. JOAC awarded UNICEF £30,000 towards the rehabilitation of Tissi health centre and five health posts, immunisation programme, nutrition support for 15,000 children, water and sanitation, education and child protection.
NIGER - Food crisis
Due to acute shortage of food and consequently severe famine over half the population of Niger was estimated to be affected by the current food crisis. JOAC awarded the Leprosy Mission £20,450 towards the provision of grain to directly assist 2000 people.
BURMA - Flooding
Flash flood waters rose dramatically after several days of rain in August 2013 in Karen State, South East Burma, forcing thousands of people to flee to nearby relief camps. JOAC awarded Christian Aid £30,000 for the provision of emergency relief kits to around 3,750 people who had lost livelihoods and had no access to clean water or food.
NIGER - Flooding
Three villages and 700 households completely disappeared following flash flooding 20km south of Tchirozerine town. Flood levels in some areas reached an unprecedented depth of four metres resulting in food, tents and cooking utensils washed away. JOAC awarded Tearfund £29,999 for the provision of food and household kits to 530 households.
PAKISTAN - Flooding
Flash flooding in Pakistan was triggered by countrywide monsoon rains claiming the lives of more than 90 people, leaving thousands homeless. JOAC awarded Tearfund £30,000 for the provision of food kits and aqua tablet distribution and supported hygiene awareness, messaging to 1,493 flood affected families; Plan UK £30,000 towards the provision of shelter, water and sanitation, food security and child protection; and Christian Aid £30,000 for emergency food kits.
BURMA - Flooding
Severe monsoon rainfall at the end of July, beginning of August, caused the flash flooding of more than ten foot in six townships along the Thailand-Burma border. The River Thanlwin burst its banks and houses and roads were
immediately damaged. JOAC awarded Tearfund £30,000 for the procurement of seeds to beneficiaries.
PHILIPPINES - Typhoon Trami
JOAC awarded Christian Aid £30,000 towards the provision of healthcare, household utensils, hygiene items, cash for food and shelter for 11,075 people, following Typhoon Trami which hit the Philippines on 18th August 2013.
BURKINA FASO - Drought
JOAC awarded Christian Aid £30,000 following its response to the severe drought had left around 442,000 people facing extreme food shortages in Burkina Faso last July. As hunger and malnutrition strike Burkina Faso was once again a country suffering yet another drought. Funding awarded provided urgently needed food for 2,800 children aged 6-23 months for four months.
NAMIBIA - Drought
Prolonged drought and food shortages left Namibia facing a malnutrition crisis with more than 778,000 people facing food shortages. Surface water had evaporated with available water often salinated and boreholes had also dried due to reduced rainfall. JOAC awarded UNICEF £30,000 to provide nutritional support, water and sanitation primarily to children.
SUDAN - Flooding
JOAC awarded UNICEF £30,000 following its response to heavy rainfall in Sudan in early August, which had caused damage to infrastructure, public buildings, health clinics, offices, shops, schools and markets affecting approximately 500,000 people. Funding enabled the provision of water and sanitation, health, nutrition, education and child protection to communities affected.
AFGHANISTAN - Drought
JOAC awarded Actionaid £30,000 for the provision of safe drinking water and seeds to those who had suffered the effects of long term drought and water shortage since June 2013. The grant also provided funding for cash for work schemes to allow those affected to earn a wage.
PAKISTAN - Earthquake
On 24th September an earthquake, magnitude 7.8 on the Richter scale, struck Baluchistan in South West Pakistan. A very remote area, information on the impact was very limited however reports indicated that at least 300,000 people were affected. JOAC awarded Christian Aid £30,000 to provide food parcels and hygiene packages to approximately 650 families (3,950 people) for one month.
BENIN - Flooding
JOAC awarded Care International UK £30,000 to fund a hygiene and sanitation awareness campaign and distribution of hygiene kits and the procurement and distribution of non-food items following its response to heavy rains in Benin.
NIGER - Flooding
JOAC awarded Christian Aid £30,000 towards its response to flooding on the Tahoua region where an estimated 125,000 people had been affected. The grant awarded enabled 250 families (1500 people) to receive food and non-food items and 500 families (3000 people) with insecticide treated mosquito nets.
PHILIPPINES - Typhoon
Typhoon Nari hit the Province of Aurora-Isabela, north of Manilla on 1st October 2013. The typhoon brought massive floods to fourteen provinces and nine cities, affecting almost a million people, damaging 59,000 houses. JOAC awarded Habitat for Humanity £30,000 for the provision of emergency shelter kits to assist 400 of the most vulnerable families in Casiguran, Aurora.
VIETNAM - Typhoon
Typhoon Nari struck the central provinces of Vietnam on 15th October 2013 with a total of seven provinces being affected by the impact. JOAC awarded Habitat for Humanity £30,000 for the provision of emergency shelter kits to assist 125 of the most vulnerable families in the Hiep Duc and Que Son Districts.
PHILIPPINES - Earthquake
On 15th October 2013, an earthquake with the magnitude of 7.2 struck the Central Visayas. A total of 558,390 families/2,841,956 people were affected with many afraid or unable to return to their homes. JOAC awarded Habitat for Humanity £30,000 for the provision of emergency shelter kits to assist 400 of the most vulnerable families in Bohol; and Christian Aid £30,000 for the provision of food and non-food packages.
INDIA - Cyclone
Cyclone Phailin made landfall on 12th October 2013, on the Odisha coast near Gopalpur with a wind speed of 240km per hour. The cyclone displaced more than 900,000 people with many living in camps, cyclone shelters, public places or with relatives. More than 5,000 hectares of agricultural land was inundated by water destroying the livelihoods of those working in fisheries and poultry. JOAC awarded Habitat for Humanity £29,964 for the provision of emergency shelter kits to assist 454 of the most vulnerable families in Ganjam and Srikakulam districts; Helpage International £29,927 for the provision of food relief items, shelter, sanitation, health and medical relief; and British Red
Cross £30,000 for the provision of clothing, kitchen sets, water buckets, shelter kits and access to safe water.
CAMBODIA - Flooding
Heavy rains resulted in the flooding of at least seventeen provinces throughout the Northwest and along the Mekong River in Central and Southern Cambodia. In the fourteen districts of Battambang an estimated 150,000 households were affected, seven of which were more serious and had to be evacuated. JOAC awarded Habitat for Humanity £29,250 for the provision of emergency shelter kits to assist 650 of the most vulnerable families in Battambang; Christian Aid £30,000 for the provision of hygiene kits, mosquito nets, dental care and water equipment; and Actionaid £30,000 for the provision of cash grants.
SPECIAL VOTES
Due to the scale of the evolving emergencies below JOAC agreed to provide additional funding over and above its standard criteria.
SYRIA - Refugee Response following conflict
Having already granted the maximum funding to this emergency earlier in the year, the number of refugees by October had more than doubled since January and by December the Commission was advised that at least 100,000 people have died as a result of the conflict with an estimated 6.5 million displaced. The humanitarian needs inside Syria has reached unprecedented levels and with the situation likely to worsen the Commission granted Save the Children £30,000, UNICEF £50,000, Oxfam £50,000 and British Red Cross £50,000.
PHILIPPINES - Typhoon
Typhoon Haiyan (local name Yolanda) made landfall in the Philippines early on Friday 8 November. It was one of the strongest storms ever to have hit land and while pre-evacuations and disaster risk reduction were very good, the Typhoon had a devastating impact. Homes were flattened, thousands of people lost their lives and families torn apart. Over 4 million people from 36 provinces were affected. JOAC granted Oxfam £50,000 for the provision of clean water and sanitation; UNICEF £50,000 for the provision of water, sanitation, nutrition, education and child protection; and British Red Cross £50,000 for the provision tarpaulins and hygiene kits. Additional funding was also raised following the launch of the Bailiff 's Disaster Appeal with JOAC committing a further £100,000 in support of this.
UNICEF
Refugee Response following Conflict in Mali, Niger
In March 2013, continued conflict in Mali led to a rapid influx of refugees from Mali into Niger. Approximately 50,000 refugees from Mali settled in the regions hardest hit by the nutrition and food security crisis in Niger and over 4.3 million people were estimated to be food insecure in Niger, as the country had not yet fully recovered from the 2010 Sahel famine.
The Mali refugees settled in temporary refugee camps located throughout Niger, where they experienced the continued food crisis, a lack of safe drinking water, sanitation, poor quality health services and child protection issues. In addition, a state of emergency declaration in May 2013 in northern Nigeria resulted in over 37,000 displaced people (Niger citizens, Nigerian refugees, and third country nationals) seeking refuge in south eastern Niger.
In March 2013, the Jersey Overseas Aid Commission generously awarded a grant of £30,000 that enabled UNICEF to provide vital nutrition, health, water and sanitation, education and child protection to Mali refugees in Niger.
UNICEF responded by supporting the government of Niger's response to the humanitarian needs of children and women affected by conflict, displacement, malnutrition and unhealthy environmental conditions. UNICEF's strong operational capacity and coordinated efforts with partners allowed for a rapid response to the crisis. UNICEF has been supporting programmes in child protection, safe water and sanitation facilities, education, health and nutrition to children settled in temporary refugee camps.
An adequate nutrition response plan was essential to mitigate the negative impact of food insecurity on vulnerable refugee families and to reduce morbidity due to severe acute malnutrition among young children. UNICEF, in collaboration with UNHCR (Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees) and WFP (World Food Programme), implemented a wet feeding programme in refugee camps for children aged 6-59 months. UNICEF supported four NGOs to screen 1,342 children suffering from moderate acute malnutrition and 256 children suffering severe acute malnutrition and made referral to nutrition centres for treatment. A total of 8,414 children benefitted from the programme (including 2,520 children aged 6-23 months and 5,894 children aged 24-59 months).
UNICEF provided access to drinking water and sanitation to host communities who were providing refuge to Mali refugees inside Niger. A total of 51,650 from the host communities benefitted from a safe water supply through water
trucking, the installation of water bladders, the construction of boreholes equipped with motor-pumps and from latrines for safe hygiene practices. In addition UNHCR also provided access to drinking water and sanitation for the refugees in the temporary camps.
UNICEF and partners carried out interventions to enhance psychosocial care for malnourished children and to prevent malnutrition for the most vulnerable women and children. These interventions were carried out in Intensive Nutritional Rehabilitation Centres and Outpatient Nutritional Rehabilitation Centres. A total of 27,049 malnourished children benefitted from psychosocial support.
UNICEF, in collaboration with UNHCR and the government of Niger, provided quality education to 6,665 refugee children (3,434 of whom were girls). UNICEF
also built additional classrooms and provided learning materials and nutritional snacks in the refugee camps and hosting areas to offer quality education to out- of-school children through the implementation of accelerated learning programmes and to pre-school children in kindergarten.
UNICEF provided psychosocial support through child-friendly spaces for children to socialise, play, and learn. In total, 4,154 children benefitted from psychosocial support in the refugee camps. In collaboration with the Ministry of Population and Child Protection and International Committee of the Red Cross, UNICEF trained partners on children associated with armed groups and forces. This training aimed to ensure preparedness to respond to a possible worsening of the situation in northern Mali and potential children associated with armed groups and forces crossing the border into Niger. UNICEF also provided temporary care for children associated with armed groups and forces and repatriated them back to Mali so that they could be reunited with parents.
UNICEF would like to thank the Jersey Overseas Aid Commission for its generous support to UNICEF's response to Mali refugees in Niger in 2013. We are very grateful for the support from Jersey Overseas Aid, which has enabled UNICEF to provide clean water, safe sanitation, vital nutrition supplies, education, and child protection to Mali refugees in Niger.
COMMUNITY WORK PROJECTS
2013 Sub-Committee for Community Work Projects Chairman: Commissioner Toni Roberts
Members: Mr. David Ellis
Mr. David Liddiard
Mr. David O'Brien
Mr. Richard Richomme
Mr. Allan Smith, MBE
Mr. Brian Stuttard
Three community work projects were approved for 2013.
BANGLADESH
£70,401, inclusive of volunteer costs, built a new clinic in Muktaram Village in the Kurigram district in Northern Bangladesh.
Team Members – Sandra Cameron (Leader), Kevin Romeril ( Deputy Leader) Philip Austin, Emmi Brown, Alan Cameron, Angela De La Haye, Karen Duquemin, Naomi Jelley, Ophelie Pimaud and Helen Wilson .
MALAWI
£40,900, inclusive of volunteer costs, enabled the refurbishment of existing student accommodation for use by paying guests working, studying or visiting the Beit CURE hospital in Blantyre, Malawi
Team Members – Toni Roberts (Leader), Lynsey Beahan ( Deputy Leader), Sam Eastwood, Lynne Le Seelleur, Alisdair Macleod, Blair Moyse-Smith, Julie Robinson, Tracey Tadier , Martin Terry-Marchant and Paul Young.
UGANDA
£57,474, inclusive of volunteer costs, completed a new maternity ward and refurbished nursing staff accommodation and a study centre in Ngora, Eastern Uganda.
Team Members – Dick Richomme (Leader), Dave O'Brien ( Deputy Leader), Hayley Alderson, Ellen Barr, Judy Benest, Loretta De Wolff, Peter Le Seelleur, Lisa Mansell, Maurice Marquer, Antiochus Omissi, Mark Peters, Holly Robertson, Ben Spencer-Newman and Stephanie Syvret.
2013 GRANTS AWARDED TO JERSEY CHARITIES WORKING OVERSEAS
BANGLADESH
Island Aid for World Children
Provision of iron and arsenic removal water filters for VIEW Little Star Primary School and medical clinic 1,680
BURKINA FASO
Freedom Church
Primary school and toilet block at Bobo-Dioulosso 15,470 KENYA
Jersey Nyalkinyi Community Projects
Renovation of health clinic at Nyalkinyi 2,536
WASOT UK
Construction and renovation of eight classrooms at Orange Primary School 20,504 Construction of maternal obstetrics and delivery unit, Kisumu 23,354
St Clements Church
Project Mwezi, sanitary products for girls 5,000 St Luke's Hospital Renovations 14,120 Girls Toilet Blocks at Rabai-Issac School 1,175 Teacher's accommodation at Malindi 9,250
Sundeep Watts Memorial Fund
Primary School classroom block at Joycelands Preparatory School, Nyanza 36,000 MOZAMBIQUE
Christian Portuguese Mission
Pre-school provision for orphans 10,000 RWANDA
Hands Around the World
Classroom renovations at St Paul's Muko School Burgarama 4,000 THE GAMBIA
Jersey Gambia Schools Trust
Installation of solar powered water pump for agricultural irrigation 2,312
UGANDA
Ngora Trust
Maternity clinic 7,499 Hands Around the World
Construction of Children's Ward at Zumbo Health Centre 19,500
ZAMBIA
Hands Around the World
Teacher's accommodation and educational equipment for Mnukwa School 8,000