The Round-up offers a weekly sample of what our sister Red Cross Societies are working on around the world.
NIGERIA: In Late August, Nigeria experienced the worst flooding in 40 years. At the height of the crisis, rising waters
drove more than 2 million people from their homes. The Nigerian Red Cross Society, with support from the IFRC, is helping. An emergency appeal has been launched to support 50,000 people for one year. Relief items including shelter kits and tarpaulins are being distributed, and first aid and psychosocial support is also being provided. But the disaster is far from over. Thousands of families remain displaced and sheltered in camps and schools. It will take months for them to get back on their feet.
SOMALIA: The ICRC and the Somali Red Crescent Society distributed seed to 15,000 farmers, who in turn will be able to feed around 90,000 people, given that the average family consists of six persons. In addition, 84,000 destitute people in the same areas, over half of whom displaced from scenes of conflict in and around Kismayo over recent weeks, received enough rice, beans, oil and other basic food to last them a month. The ICRC is supporting the efforts of communities to feed themselves and generate an income, in addition to distributing emergency supplies. From October to December, for instance, people along the coast in the Banadir, Lower Shabelle and Lower Juba regions are taking part in a fisheries programme that will enable them to produce more food and become more self-reliant.
GLOSSARY:
IFRC = International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
ICRC = International Committee of the Red Cross