FORGOTTEN EMERGENCIES:
AN UPDATE ON
LWR'S ONGOING WORK
Background:
LWR’s calling to address the root causes of global suffering compels us to remember all tragedies, even those which fall from the headlines. In this update we focus on forgotten emergencies around the world.
UPDATE ON FORGOTTEN EMERGENCIES 2/09
MYANMAR: On May 2, 2008, Cyclone Nargis struck the Ayeyarwady and Yangon divisions of Myanmar (Burma). This Category 3 cyclone, carrying wind speeds up to 120 m.p.h., brought with it an estimated 12-ft. tidal surge that destroyed most of the homes in lower-lying regions. 140,000 people were killed or remain missing. An estimated 2.4 million people were affected by the storm. LWR is responding through our international partners in the global aid alliance, Action by Churches Together (ACT) International. In the post-disaster response to the crisis, LWR’s partners are providing improved access to drinking water and assisting communities in rebuilding houses and schools. Construction is underway on cyclone shelters which will offer protection if future cyclones hit Myanmar. LWR’s partners are also offering trainings and other programs to help communities better respond to future disasters.
UGANDA: Malaria is responsible for more illness and death than any other disease in Uganda. In most parts of the country, ideal temperature and rainfall levels means that year-round malaria transmission occurs at high levels with little seasonable variability. Kitgum District in northern Uganda is one of these critically affected areas. The population, only recently emerging from years of conflict, is at high risk for contracting the disease, due to lack of adequate information or tools for vector control, lack of recognition of symptoms and treatment options and limited resources to access those tools or treatments. LWR is implementing a malaria prevention and awareness project in partnership with Lutheran World Federation, to reach those most vulnerable to malaria—pregnant women, children under 5 years of age, and those living with HIV & AIDS. The initial phase of the project will focus on the distribution of Long Lasting Insecticide Treated Nets (LLITNs), while the second phase of the project will focus on providing information on correct and consistent LLITN use, fever identification and timely health-seeking behavior for fever.
COLOMBIA: It is estimated that as many as 3.6 million people, many of them children and single mothers, have been forced to leave their homes as a result of Colombia’s 40 year civil conflict. The armed actors include paramilitaries, guerillas, and government forces. Massacres and kidnappings are an everyday occurrence. Colombia’s population of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) is second only to Sudan’s, and the UN has called Colombia’s humanitarian crisis the worst in the western hemisphere. LWR is working to help IDPs establish sustainable livelihoods such as farms and small businesses, and supporting community-based activities that seek to promote dialogue, resolution of conflict, and alternatives to violence. In the US, LWR educates and empowers its constituents to advocate to the US government for a more just policy toward Colombia.
This work is made possible by undesignated gifts to LWR’s general fund.
You may also call 1-800-LWR-LWR-2, or mail a check or money order to:
Lutheran World Relief -
P.O. Box 17061
Baltimore, MD 21298-9832
USA
Thank You for your help.
Lutheran World Relief is a ministry of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA), The Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS), individuals and parish groups in international relief, development, advocacy and social responsibility. LWR is a member of Action by Churches Together.
