Low levels of rain, combined with high food prices and widespread poverty, has meant that West African countries will face tough times ahead without help from the international community. More than 10 million people in Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger are at risk of hunger when their supplies run out due to a poor harvesting season.

Christian Children’s Fund of Canada (CCFC) has been working in Burkina Faso for 25 years.

“Fourteen of our program communities are trying to cope with food shortages due to this drought,” says Philip Maher, Communications Director at CCFC who is currently in Burkina Faso assessing needs in the country. “We need to act now to preserve the life and dignity of those who live in these communities.”

Last year, Burkina Faso’s inadequate rainfall during the regular season – from June to October – has resulted in poor crops, dried waterways and water ponds.

“What I have harvested is far from even half of what I usually get,” says Tilado Gilbert Kaboré, a local farmer and father of six. “My granary (silo) has been empty for a long time.”

Farmers like Tilado, their communities, and livestock will have to endure without access to water and food until rains st again this June.

Through partner organizations, CCFC plans to distribute food rations to malnourished children, breast-feeding mothers, and pregnant women in the Eastern and Central regions of the country. CCFC will supply emergency food aid for three months and has long-term plans to help families recover their livelihood by providing them with livestock and seeds.

Melissa Wallace
Communications Officer
Christian Children’s Fund of Canada
Office: 905-754-1010 Ext. 220
E-mail: mwallace@ccfcanada.ca

ChildFund Ireland is an international development organisation dedicated to working with children, their families and communities in order to develop an enabling environment where children’s basic need are met and their rights are promoted and respected.

With funding provided by Irish Aid (the Irish government’s programme of overseas development assistance), thousands of Irish sponsors and staff of a number of larger Irish companies, ChildFund Ireland works in partnership with field based members of ChildFund Alliance to create sustainable, child-focused, community-based development programmes in areas where children are impacted by poverty and global health issues such as HIV and AIDS, as well as war and natural disasters. 

POSITION SUMMARY

ChildFund Ireland is seeking a part-time Public Engagement Intern for a period of six months to assist with a range of communications activities related primarily to a new four year development programme being implemented by ChildFund in three countries in Africa which is co-funded by Irish Aid.  

Activities will be carried out in four separate but integrated areas, as follows: Public Relations; Digital Media; Schools based promotion; and Advertising.

The aim of the role is to increase public understanding of and engagement with overseas development assistance.  It will include updating the website, writing articles and stories, organising event(s), liaising with journalists and PR advisers, making presentations and developing other PR materials as required.

Reporting to the Manager, the PE Intern will join a small team in the Programme and Grants Department.   He/she will also work closely with other ChildFund staff engaged in sponsor relations and marketing. 

The Public Engagement campaign will have the support of a Communications Consultant.   The successful applicant will assist in the further development and roll-out of the campaign. Some travel within Ireland may be required.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Candidates will have:

• Excellent written and verbal skills in English
• A background and/or recognised qualification in communications, PR or campaigning
• Familiarity with computers and basic IT packages such as Microsoft word and excel
• Experience with social and web-based media
• Excellent communication and social skills
• Enthusiasm and energy
• Ability to work on own initiative
• An interest in development, equality and rights

The following would be an advantage:

• Knowledge of web design and editing, as well as audio/video production and editing
• Photography skills
• Access to a car
• A knowledge of Irish
• Understanding of early childhood development and pedagogy
• Experience of the voluntary sector and international development

Recent graduates with a degree in communications, public relations, marketing, or related field are encouraged to apply.

The position is unpaid but travel and lunch expenses will be covered.

To apply, please submit a CV with a covering letter indicating your interest in the position. Applications should be marked “Public Engagement Intern” and sent to Pam McHugh, pam.mchugh@childfund.ie by close of business on Friday 27th April.

ChildFund Ethiopia chose International Women’s Day in 2012 to show both their own and their implementing partners’ commitment to fighting gender based violence.   The focus was through community based programming with the direct involvement of stakeholders and the community.

This was planned and carried out in collaboration with the government’s Zonal (sub-regional administrative area) and Woreda (district) Women, Children and Youth Affairs Offices.  Events started on International Women’s Day - 8th March 2012 – and continued into the following week.

Different messages were passed to the public to help raise awareness on gender based violence in order to tackle a major problem that hinders women’s role in development in their areas.   The messages included   “Teaching Women/Girls is teaching Society”; “Stop Female Genital Mutilation/FGM” and “Women’s participation is needed to ensure development”; “Men’s involvement is essential to ensure Women’s rights” .

In addition, children from Arada Child and Family Development Association /CFDA commemorated the day with an art display that demonstrates Women’s role for development.

Eight women staff from the ChildFund Ethiopia office in Addis Ababa participated in a five km race on March 11, 2012.

Go ChildFund Ethiopia!

The theme of International Women’s Day 2012 is Connecting Girls, Inspiring Futures.

ChildFund Ireland is a member of the Irish Joint Consortium on Gender Based Violence which in conjunction with the Irish Forum for Global Health, is hosting an event to celebrate International Women’s Day 2012. 

The focus of the event will be ‘The Health and Social Consequences of Violence Against Women and Girls’.  

The main speakers will be Dr. Avni Amin of the World Health Organization in Geneva and Alwiye Xusein of AkiDwA in Dublin.

It will be chaired by Eilish MacAuliffe, Executive Committee – Irish Forum for Global Health, Director – Centre for Global Health and Jim Clarken: CEO – Oxfam Ireland, Chair – Irish Joint Consortium on Gender Based Violence.

It will be held in the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin Castle, Dame Street, Dublin 2 from 2pm to 4.30pm on Thursday 8th March.

If you would like to attend, please email jcgbvmail@gmail.com

OVERVIEW

Tropical Depression Dando made landfall over the coast of Mozambique in southern Africa earlier last week. Dando is the first storm to hit this part of Mozambique since the infamous Tropical Storm Domoina in 1984, according to the UK Met Office.   Tropical cyclone Dando hit southern Mozambique and flooded the homes of approximately 247 families in Maputo city and Matola.  Dando caused serious damage in Gaza affecting 2,640 houses and 169 schools. Schools were also affected in Inhambane province, in the district of Zavala (ChildFund operating area) where over 81 class rooms (including a dormitory for more than 200 female students) were damaged.

In Zavala, the majority of the schools were partially destroyed (roof and walls of the classrooms ripped off), education materials like books and administrative files soaked in water. The roof of the health post ripped off, the health staff house were destroyed. The food crops and cash crops were extensively destroyed as well as fruit trees. The roads were blocked and phones were cut off and there were frequent electricity cuts. Due to the flooding  Maputo was temporally  cut off from the other parts of the country including Zavala following the washing away of a section of the main road (National Road #1) linking the Northern and Southern parts of the country.  However, the governmental department of public house has restored the communication between south and north fixing the section affected.

In Northern Mozambique, Zambezia and Cabo Delgado tropical storm Funso made landfall unleashing heavy rains. It is reported that 16 people were killed and over 1500 hectares of various crops were lost.

At United Nations level, a technical committee of disaster management (CTGC) composed of Government of Mozambique and members of the humanitarian country team (HCT) gathered together last week to evaluate the impact of the current rainy and cyclone season.  As a preparedness measure, the CTGC declared an Orange alert to ensure that all emergency actors were ready to intervene.  At national level, the national Institute of disaster management (INGC) also activated its operations in coordination with other humanitarian organization operating in Mozambique. At provincial level, and particularly at district level (Zavala) the local emergency committee was activated and ChildFund is represented in this committee by the area office staff.

OVERVIEW OF CHILDFUND RESPONSE

In response to this situation, ChildFund conducted a rapid assessment in Zavala district. ChildFund also provided logistic support to Zavala district government emergency committee during the assessment exercise conducted by the government jointly with ChildFund and other stakeholders.  A concept paper was developed and approved in order to respond to the calamity in Zavala district. The main areas of response are: Education, Health, and Food security.

Many people, including children, are in shock and confused about the situation. ChildFund recognizes that children in emergency situations need a safe space in which to play and reestablish a sense of normalcy. “Child-centered spaces provide psychosocial support for children who have been affected by emergencies,” said Mark Anthony Dasco, acting country director in the Philippines. “They also provide a safe, physical space for children to gather in an unstable environment.”

John, a 13-year-old staying at the West City Central evacuation center said, “It was so frightening. First, the water was at knee level. It then rose very quickly to my waist and then neck level. I almost drowned. Good that my father was able to get hold of me.”

John says about ChildFund’s child-centered space “I play with other children and I can forget about what has happened.”

ChildFund is also providing emergency relief to 2,000 children and families in Cagayan de Oro, one of the worst-hit areas. Families are receiving bottled water, food items and hygiene kits.

ChildFund is raising funds to open more child-centered spaces to reach out to more children. “ChildFund is working to protect children and help them recover from this stressful experience,” said Dasco. “We will continuously support the families and communities as they recover from this disaster.”

Please click below to find out more:

ChildFund Ireland Small Voices Big Dreams Press Release - SVBD Press Release

Small Voices Big Dreams Full Report - SVBD Full Report

Small Voices Big Dreams Video - Small Voices Big Dreams Video

With the new app-game from ChildFund, ”Squish the Mosquito,” families can contribute to the fight against malaria while having fun. By merging entertainment, learning and fundraising into one unit— a game – ChildFund hopes to increase awareness of malaria in Denmark and to raise money for assisting children and their families world-wide.

Fun to Give
”Fundraising, these years, is radically changing. And one of the new trends is what has been called funraising. In Childfund, we focus in the health of children world-wide, and because of that, raising money in a fun way that involves our own children makes great sense,” says Marianne Schou Delkus, Head of Communication in ChildFund Denmark.

Fun to Learn
The purpose of ”Squish the Mosquito” is to squish mosquitos in a rapidly increasing pace to prevent them from biting the young African girl, Elisa and her family. The game is inspired by reality and uses situations where mosquitos are active, e.g. when cooking at dusk or when Elisa is getting water from the pond.

”First of all, ‘Squish the Mosquito’ is fun to play. But at the same time we have chosen to include an element of learning. This is why the game is based on real situations. The app, however, is first and foremost a fun game and it is made with passion and great care for the children who are meant to play it,” says Marianne Schou Delkus.

Malaria is a Huge Problem
Every year, millions of people are affected by malaria. In 2008, malaria was the cause of 20% of all child deaths– that is one child dying every 45 seconds due to malaria. And though malaria is decreasing in some parts of Africa, help is still needed world-wide. Malaria is both preventable and treatable. All it takes is medicine, and, before that, awareness.

Info
The new app is available at Apple’s AppStore for the price of 2$.
Find more information about the game and malaria at www.squish-the-mosquito.com.

Contact
Head of communication Marianne Schou Delkus, msd@bornefonden.dk, phone (0045) 26739128
Childfund Denmark – Jagtvej 157 – 2200 Copenhagen