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Save the Children Receives Gates Foundation Grant to Assist Children in Flood-Affected South Asia
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Save the Children staff distributing much needed supplies to families affected by the recent flash flooding in Nepal. |
Westport, Conn. (August 21, 2007) — Save the Children announced today that it has received a $500,000 grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to help thousands of families in Nepal and Bangladesh recovering from the recent monsoon-triggered flooding.
Save the Children is currently reaching out to tens of thousands of children and their families in the area with critical supplies and providing ongoing support in the areas of health, emergency food and non-food supplies, and water and sanitation as the population works toward recovery.
"Besides providing badly needed resources, we hope that this decision by the Gates Foundation draws more public attention to a humanitarian crisis that is getting far too little attention in the United States but continues to imperil the lives of hundreds of thousands of families in South Asia," said Rudy Von Bernuth, who heads emergency response operations for Save the Children, based in Westport, CT. "We hope that the generosity of the Gates Foundation will encourage others to support this important humanitarian effort."
"This humanitarian crisis in South Asia is underserved and requires immediate action," said Charles Lyons, director of special initiatives, Global Development Program at the Gates Foundation. "Save the Children's efforts will help tens of thousands of people — at least a third of them children — who face long months of rebuilding."
The grant will support Save the Children's emergency response efforts in Nepal and Bangladesh, with a focus on public health programs and the re-establishment of quality health services.
In Nepal, highly vulnerable groups, including children and pregnant and lactating mothers, are being prioritized for support. In addition, the agency will assist local communities in re-establishing quality education and health services, and the drinking water system. To protect children from starvation and the risk of spreading waterborne diseases, Save the Children also will organize health and sanitation sessions for affected communities.
In Bangladesh, Save the Children is working to mitigate the negative affects of flood on the lives of children and their families by distributing water purification tablets and installing hand wells; distributing food packages containing dry food, biscuits, cereals, iodized salt and sugar — as well as supplementary food for children under 3 years old to prevent acute malnutrition; and supplying shelter materials. In addition, the agency will provide recreation kits so that children in affected areas can engage in age-suitable activities in safe spaces. Save the Children plans to reach 82,000 flood-affected households, with priority given to children and families living in hard-to-reach areas; children without parents; the elderly and people with disabilities; and pregnant and lactating mothers.
Save the Children is the leading independent organization creating lasting change for children in need in the United States and around the world. For 75 years, Save the Children has been helping children survive and thrive by improving their health, education and economic opportunities and, in times of acute crisis, mobilizing rapid lifesaving assistance to help children recover from the effects of war, conflict and natural disasters.
About the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Guided by the belief that every life has equal value, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation works to help all people lead healthy, productive lives. In developing countries, it focuses on improving people's health and giving them the chance to lift themselves out of hunger and extreme poverty. In the United States, it seeks to ensure that all people—especially those with the fewest resources—have access to the opportunities they need to succeed in school and life. Based in Seattle, the foundation is led by CEO Patty Stonesifer and co-chair William H. Gates Sr., under the direction of Bill and Melinda Gates and Warren Buffett.
Read more about Save the Children's response efforts.
