February 10, 2006 -

( La Paz , Bolivia ) – Despite hailstorms, heavy rains and severe flooding across Bolivia, Save the Children is providing hundreds of children and their families with lifesaving assistance.

Save the Children has moved quickly to assist children left homeless by flooding and landslides in remote, mountainous areas in La Paz and Oruro, where the organization has worked for 20 years. Heavy rains in recent weeks have resulted in floods and mudslides in six of the nine departments in the country, affecting an estimated 60,000 people.

President Evo Morales has declared a state of emergency and appealed for international aid. Preliminary assessments indicate that the disaster has caused significant damage, and many homes have been under water for weeks.

"Save the Children, with the help of private donors and the U.S. Agency for International Aid, is helping meet the needs of many children and their families impacted by recent flooding," said Gary Shaye, Director of Save the Children's Field Office in Bolivia. "The situation is grave and will be exacerbated by the rainy season. The vulnerability of these communities is going to increase as torrential rains continue over the coming weeks."

Save the Children distributed food to 73 families whose homes were damaged by the landslides that occurred because of the heavy rains that have been taking place in recent weeks.

According to the United Nations, the disaster has left thousands of families and many children in a precarious situation with livelihoods destroyed and basic water and sanitation services cut off. It is estimated that 60--100 percent of crops and livestock upon which families are dependent have been destroyed.

Save the Children to date has supplied essential medicines, blankets, school supplies and staple foods such as wheat, corn, lentils, chickpeas and soy blend to 309 families in five communities and clean water to 165 families in four communities. Additionally, Save the Children will provide food assistance next week to another 2,073 families dispersed throughout 100 remote communities.

Save the Children has worked in Bolivia since 1986, with programs focusing on education, food security, youth, newborn health, school health and nutrition, and water and sanitation.

Contacts: (In Bolivia)
Sdenka Cespedes
Cell: 591-72579737
Office: 591-2-2481606
Email: scespedes@savechildren.org.bo

Contacts: (In the U.S.)
Mike Kiernan
Cell: 202-460-0614
Office: 202-261-4686
Email: mkiernan@dc.savechildren.org