For Immediate Release: 20 January 2006

30,000 Families in Pakistan Receive Shelter Assistance from Save the Children

Thirty thousand families living in earthquake-hit villages in the remotest parts of Pakistan and India have now received help from Save the Children (SC) according to Save the Children’s Pakistan Earthquake Response Situation Report released today by Liz Gibbs of SCNZ.

The families have received tents, large plastic sheets, shelter kits, blankets and household items to provide basic shelter for more than 30,000 families. On top of this assistance, Save the Children has also:

- Distributed 133,497 corrugated iron sheets to more than 18,000 households,

- Established 92 safe play spaces, and

- Provided the opportunity for more than 4,000 children to enter school, many for the first time in their lives.

“This is a pleasing milestone but there is much more to be done. Rain and snowfall in the last few days has presented new challenges for the region. The temperature dropped to below –8 degrees celcius in the mountains and some relief operations have been constrained by road blockages. Save the Children sent two teams to Seran and Chattar Plain valleys to assess the situation after the current spell of heavy snowfall.

“Keeping warm is a constant battle for families like those in the Meira camp in Northern Pakistan where women are now making mud stoves with assistance from SC. United States Senator John Kerry paid a visit to the camp earlier this week and called on a school where 2000 children were receiving warm uniforms distributed by Save the Children.

“New Zealanders can help by donating to Save the Children New Zealand’s ‘Blankets for Kashmir’ appeal. Blankets make a huge difference to the health and wellbeing of children and their families as they battle the cold over winter,” Liz Gibbs said.

One blanket costs $34. So far, SCNZ has raised enough money for 3000 blankets.

ENDS

Notes to Editor

- The ‘Blankets for Kashmir’ programme was launched on the 15th of December 2005. More information on this can be found on the SCNZ website www.savethechildren.org.nz.

- Further facts and figures on the situation in earthquake-hit Pakistan are available in the attached situation report.

Save the Children
Pakistan Earthquake Response
Situation Report #18
January 18, 2006 (released NZ January 20, 2006)

Women using the community kitchens Save the Children established at Meira Camp told staff that they would like to have mud stoves like those in the villages. They had identified one woman who was known to be an expert in making stoves but her male relatives would not allow her to leave the tent. Save the Children arranged for her to train five women in stove making at her tent. The trainees are now busy constructing stoves in the kitchens.
Women who use the 41 kitchens at Meira Camp say they spend an average of five hours a day there, cooking safely, socializing and sharing information. It is a “purdah place” where we can feel comfortable, commented one woman.

Photo by Murad, © Save the Children Federation, Inc.

I. To date, Save the Children has:

- Distributed 133,497 CGI sheets to more than 18,000 households.
- Distributed tents, large plastic sheets, shelter kits, blankets and household items to provide basic shelter for more than 30,000 families.
- Established 92 safe play spaces.
- Provided the opportunity for more than 4,000* children to enter school, many for the first time in their lives.

*Actual enrollment in temporary learning spaces in NWFP plus estimated 45 students per tented/semi-permanent classroom in Kashmir

II. Weekly Overview/Highlights
- Another strong weather system caused rain and snowfall in last few days. Relief operations may be affected due to road blockages, especially in high-elevation areas. The temperature dropped as low as -8ºC in the mountains. An updated weather forecast is available at http://www.pakmet.com.pk/.
- In Muzaffarabad, the IOM reports that there is substantial coverage of assessed needs with some remaining gaps. Shelter coverage in Bagh is now thought to be fairly comprehensive.
- Save the Children sent two teams to Seran and Chattar Plain valleys to assess the situation after current spell of heavy snowfall.
- US Senator John Kerry toured Meira Camp on Saturday, January 16, and visited a Save the Children supported school where 2000 children were receiving uniforms distributed by Save the Children.

III. Response

Protection
- Two new safe places were established this week and one safe play space tent was erected in Kashmir. To date, Save the Children has established 92 Safe Play Spaces.
- Training in psychosocial support was held on the 9th January for 60 people (52 supervisors, 2 mobilizers and 5 safe play space coordinators).

Education
- Save the Children has established 17 Temporary Learning Spaces and set up 45 classroom tents or semi-permanent structures.
- Work on 58 semi-permanent school buildings is in progress.
- Save the Children continues to support the primary school established in Phase II of Meira Camp. Two additional teachers were recruited bringing the total to seven, and 599 students are now enrolled at the school.
- Save the Children distributed school uniforms to 2000 students in Meira Camp.

Health
- In spite of it being a holiday week, 1,063 patients were seen at the Bana hospital.
- Hospital staff and volunteer Dr. Michelle assisted with three deliveries (2 boys and a girl), bringing the total number of babies born at the hospital to 13. The number of births is accelerating as more women in Allai realize the possibility of hospital delivery for the first time.
- A donor in San Francisco has funded 3,000 pairs of children’s socks. The first pair was given on Saturday to an infant (less than one year) boy whose father had died in the earthquake.

Livelihoods
- Two hundred and sixty eight people have been employed in work ranging from creating and upgrading walking tracks and building roads to teaching sewing.

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