Haiti January 11, 2012 1:02PM
Helping rebuild economy two years after devastating quake
Lindsay Murphy
Communications Associate
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Two years after a massive earthquake decimated the capital city of Port-au-Prince, Mercy Corps continues helping Haitians to recover and rebuild by creating economic opportunities to help lift people out of poverty, and establishing programs focusing on agriculture, environment and youth.
September 6, 2011 1:08AM
Don’t squander the chance to build a better South Sudan
Erin Gray
Senior Media Communications Officer, European HQ
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As part of a coalition of 38 aid agencies, Mercy Corps has called on international donors not to squander the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of the people of South Sudan, the world’s newest nation. The call came as new violence in Jonglei state increased emergency needs.
Donors are due to meet with Government of South Sudan officials over the next coming months to discuss development priorities. The country is one of the poorest in the world, with half the population living below the poverty line and, after decades of brutal war, is being built up almost from scratch.
July 20, 2011 3:19AM
As UN declares Africa famine, Scots charity says situation grave
Erin Gray
Senior Media Communications Officer, European HQ
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Today (20 July) the United Nations has declared that the severe food crisis in East Africa has reached famine levels in parts of Somalia. Scottish-based humanitarian charity Mercy Corps said that the situation is grave and that the 10.7 million people affected by the crisis need help urgently.
Mervyn Lee, Executive Director of Mercy Corps’ European Headquarters in Edinburgh said:
“This is the worst drought the region has seen in 60 years, and the first time the UN has declared a famine since 1984. It’s affecting hundreds of thousands of families and the situation is extremely serious. We know from our teams on the ground that the drought has had a devastating impact and that millions of people are on the move looking for food and water. Traditional herders and their families have been hit the hardest, and women, children and the elderly are the first ones succumbing to starvation and disease.
“We’re already helping thousands, but the scale of this crisis is huge and it’s getting worse. We are asking the public to donate whatever they can to help us save lives.”
Mercy Corps is responding to the drought in the Horn of Africa with emergency operations in north-eastern Kenya, as well as hard-hit Ethiopia and Somalia. The charity has already helped more than 150,000 people there, and are continuing with much needed initiatives like emergency food distributions, water trucking and purification and cash-for-work schemes.
How to help:
Members of the public can donate to the Mercy Corps East Africa Crisis Appeal online at www.mercycorps.org.uk, by calling 0800 0665766 (24 hours), or by texting ‘TAKE10 £10’ to 70070 to donate £10.
July 7, 2011 11:59PM
Edinburgh launches city-wide East Africa Crisis Appeal
Erin Gray
Senior Media Communications Officer, European HQ
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Today Scotland’s capital launched an urgent appeal for donations to help millions of people facing hunger and severe malnutrition in East Africa. The Edinburgh Disasters Response Committee appeal – led by Edinburgh-based charity Mercy Corps and City of Edinburgh Council – will bring desperately needed aid to people in the grip of the worst drought the region has seen for 60 years.
The drought, brought on by two consecutive poor rainy seasons, has caused a severe food crisis across East Africa. Mercy Corps is concerned about the welfare of more than 10 million people affected in countries like Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia, in which the humanitarian agency has been working for years.
Mercy Corps Director of Fundraising John Cunningham said:
“The drought has already affected millions, and sadly it’s getting worse. River levels have reached historic minimums and the effects of the drought are increased by a sharp spike in food and fuel prices, as well as conflict and limited humanitarian access. Hundreds of thousands of families have been pushed into desperate need and forced to leave their homes in search of food, water and shelter.
“Mercy Corps is already bringing relief to hungry families and helping people become self-sufficient so they can feed themselves in the future. But now more than ever we need help from the people of Edinburgh to respond to this huge crisis. With the support of Scotland’s capital the East Africa Crisis Appeal will help thousands of families in desperate need.”
Edinburgh’s Lord Provost George Grubb said: “I'm pleased to have seen action from the British Government and aid agencies to deal with the impact of this crisis. For our part, we want to lend any help Edinburgh can give to the millions of people in need in East Africa. I would ask the people of Edinburgh to give everything they can to support the appeal. The Capital has a long and proud tradition of reaching out to those in less fortunate circumstances, and I hope we will see that compassion and generosity in action as a response to this crisis.”
How to help:
The Edinburgh Disasters Response Committee is calling on people in the city to donate to the appeal through Edinburgh-based humanitarian charity Mercy Corps, at www.mercycorps.org.uk, by calling 0800 0665766 (24 hours), or by texting ‘TAKE10 £10’ to 70070 to donate £10.
March 14, 2011 4:03AM
Mercy Corps and Peace Winds Respond to Needs in Japan’s Devastated Earthquake Zone
Erin Gray
Senior Media Communications Officer, European HQ
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The global humanitarian agency Mercy Corps is responding to the 8.9 magnitude earthquake and tsunami that hit Japan on Friday. Mercy Corps is working with its long-time partner agency Peace Winds - which has rushed teams into the quake zone - and is putting members of its own emergency response team on high alert to provide support. Immediate concerns are food, shelter and clean water for survivors.
“Working with our partner Peace Winds, Mercy Corps is moving quickly to address the most pressing needs in the earthquake zone,” said Mercy Corps European Headquarters Executive Director Mervyn Lee. “This kind of enormous disaster is overwhelming, even for a well-prepared country like Japan. With Peace Winds’ Japanese base and global reach, as well as Mercy Corps’ expertise responding to disasters around the world, we are ideally positioned to assist the Japanese people.”
Two teams of Peace Winds expert responders set off for the disaster zone in Natori, Miyagi Prefecture of northeast Japan on Saturday. Working with corporate and government partners, they will be providing balloon shelters, which can accommodate up to 600 people, large emergency tents, water, food and blankets. They will continue to watch and respond to needs on the ground in the coming days.
In addition, Mercy Corps emergency responders in the region stand at the ready to support Peace Winds’ efforts. The number one priority for the partner organisations is to assess and help fill immediate needs for life-saving basics like shelter, food and clean water. In the longer term, the partners aim to help earthquake-affected families rebuild their lives.
Mercy Corps is already taking steps to make its Comfort for Kids signature programme available in Japan. Comfort for Kids has provided post-trauma assistance to children and caregivers in settings as diverse as New York City after the terrorist attacks of 9/11, Sichuan Province of China after 2008’s powerful earthquake, and most recently, the earthquake zone of Haiti.
Mercy Corps and Peace Winds have worked together to respond to disasters numerous times over the past decade. The two organisations worked together to provide humanitarian assistance to families in war-torn northern Iraq and Afghanistan, and in the US Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina. They also jointly responded to 2003’s massive earthquake in Bam, Iran, which required a large-scale and complicated logistical operation.
According to Japanese news reports, Friday’s Sendai earthquake and subsequent tsunami have killed at least 1,597 people, but many thousands more are missing and the full scale of the damage caused is not yet known. The twin disasters forced the evacuation of 300,000 people. The 8.9 quake struck on Friday about 250 miles from Tokyo, and is the strongest earthquake to hit Japan in at least 100 years.
March 1, 2011 2:57AM
Mercy Corps assessment team heads to Libya
Erin Gray
Senior Media Communications Officer, European HQ
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The global humanitarian organisation Mercy Corps – which has its European headquarters in Edinburgh - has sent a team of experts to Libya to assess how the agency might help address urgent needs stemming from the political crisis engulfing the country. The team from Mercy Corps is expected to arrive in Libya later this week.
“With change sweeping across Libya and other parts of the region, Mercy Corps stands ready to address immediate humanitarian needs where they arise and to bolster longer-term development, civic engagement and governance efforts,” says Executive Director for Mercy Corps European Headquarters Mervyn Lee. “It is critical that countries emerge from the current unrest with a renewed commitment to justice and prosperity for all people.”
The Libya assessment team is led by Steve Haley, who currently directs Mercy Corps programmes in Lebanon and formerly held the same post in northern Iraq. The team's first goal is to determine current and projected humanitarian needs. Violence and displacement caused by the political upheaval could have dramatic impact on critical services, such as health, as well as the availability of food and water.
There may also be significant humanitarian needs stemming from the flow of refugees into neighbouring countries, including Egypt. According to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, approximately 100,000 migrant workers have fled Libya in the past week.
The team plans to meet with community leaders to determine what role Mercy Corps can best play in meeting humanitarian needs and supporting Libya's potential political transition.
The two-week assessment builds on Mercy Corps' robust emergency response, economic development and governance work in five countries in the Middle East, plus the West Bank and Gaza.
In the region, Mercy Corps responds to immediate humanitarian needs such as food and water shortages; works with communities to build roads, schools, and other infrastructure; empowers youth leaders through its Global Citizen Corps program; and nurtures civil society organizations - from parent-teacher associations to farmers' co-ops - that are integral to well-functioning democracies.
February 24, 2011 3:00AM
Afghan raisins grown with help of Edinburgh charity hit Scotland’s shelves
Erin Gray
Senior Media Communications Officer, European HQ
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Fairtrade raisins grown in Afghanistan with the help of Scots charity Mercy Corps will go on sale for the first time in Edinburgh and Glasgow next week. The Tropical Wholefoods raisins will reach the shelves of the One World Shop in both cities in time to mark Fairtrade Fortnight (28 February – 13 March).
The raisins are grown by Afghan farmers in the Shomali Plain in Afghanistan, an area torn by war for the last 20 years. With advice, training and support from Edinburgh-based humanitarian agency Mercy Corps, 300 farmers in the Shomali region pulled together in a co-operative to increase the quality of their crop, learn new farming techniques, meet Fairtrade standards and earn enough from their land to support their families. Mercy Corps connected the farmers with Tropical Wholefoods, a UK based fair trade importer of tropical fruit and nuts, who now buy the raisins and sell them in the UK via independent stores like the One World Shop.
Mark Chadwick, Mercy Corps Programme Officer said:
“Life in Afghanistan is tough for ordinary families. It’s one of the poorest countries in the world, and decades of fighting have devastated traditional farming trades like raisin production. We’ve been working with the farmers of the Shomali Plains to help them make the most of their raisin crops and earn enough to provide for their families, and selling to UK markets is a great opportunity. The raisins are of a really high quality, approved by experts and Fairtrade certified, so it’s a huge accomplishment and the extra income is really making a difference for the farmers and their families.”
Rachel Farey, Business Manager of the One World Shop said:
“We’re really pleased to be able to stock this pioneering new product in time for Fairtrade Fortnight. This project has brought the benefits of Fairtrade to a whole new and challenging part of the world and we’re sure these Afghan raisins are going to sell well. Shoppers are more interested than ever before in the people behind their everyday products and this is just one of many interesting Fairtrade foods and gifts on our shelves.”
ENDS
Photos and interviews available.
For more information contact Erin Gray, Mercy Corps Press Officer:
Tel: +44 (0)131 662 5164
Mobile: +44 (0)791 7532954
Email: egray@uk.mercycorps.org
Notes to editors
Mercy Corps helps people turn the crises they confront into the opportunities they deserve. Driven by local needs, our programmes provide communities in the world’s toughest places with the tools and support they need to transform their own lives. Our worldwide team in 36 countries is improving the lives of 19 million people. For more information, please visit www.mercycorps.org.uk
The One World Shop is a pioneering fair trade organisation. It has been raising awareness of fair trade and selling the very best in fairly traded products from around the world since 1983. It sells a wide range of food, crafts, jewellery, textiles, toys, ceramics, cards, and books. It currently operate two shops - one in Glasgow and one in Edinburgh and sell a small range of products online. One World Shop also works with schools, faith communities and local businesses in education work to promote fair trade.
Edinburgh shop: St John’s Church, Princes Street, EH2 4BJ
Glasgow shop: 649 Great Western Road, Glasgow, G12 8RE
For more information, call 0131 229 4541 or visit www.oneworldshop.co.uk
Tropical Wholefoods was established by husband and wife team Adam Brett and Kate Sebag eighteen years ago in order to win lasting markets for farmers in developing countries. It supplies its products to health food chains such as Wholefoods, Planet Organic and Holland and Barrett as well as independent and fine food shops, and Oxfam shops nationwide. Tropical Wholefoods sells online and also exports to Europe, Scandinavia and the Far East. Most of their products carry the Fairtrade Mark, the only independent consumer guarantee of a fair deal for farmers in developing countries. In the UK the Fairtrade Mark is administered by the Fairtrade Foundation.
Tropical Wholefoods works with business partners in some of the world’s poorer countries. It buys organic dried bananas and pineapples from Fruits of the Nile in Uganda which in turn works with more than 700 farmers. It buys dried apricots, walnuts, almonds and apricot kernels from Mountain Fruits which works with more than 1500 farmers in the remote, arid mountains of northern Pakistan. It buys dried mangoes and cashews from Farming Associations WOUOL and TON in Burkina Faso. www.tropicalwholefoods.co.uk
September 1, 2010 5:49AM
Edinburgh launches city-wide appeal to fund clean water for Pakistan flood survivors
Erin Gray
Senior Media Communications Officer, European HQ
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As flood waters continue to rage in Pakistan, Scotland’s capital today (30 August) launched an urgent appeal to raise funds for the millions affected by the disaster.
The Edinburgh Disasters Response Committee – led by aid agency Mercy Corps in association with the City of Edinburgh Council and other city organisations - is calling on people to donate via Edinburgh-based Mercy Corps, to help the people of Pakistan recover from the floods.
"Access to clean water is critical to prevent potentially lethal water-borne diseases like cholera spreading, particularly in areas overcrowded with those made homeless by the flood waters. If untreated, cholera can kill a child in less than 24 hours," said John Cunningham of Mercy Corps, "The floods have had a huge impact on the whole of Pakistan, and there's a real risk that water-borne disease could take hold and make this tragedy even worse as the months go on.
"Immediate emergency aid is crucial, but it is just as important to make sure that people have access to clean water supply once the flood waters recede and the recovery and rebuild effort begins. With the help and generosity of the people of Edinburgh, we will build 50 lasting, sustainable water sources that will benefit more than 50,000 people in Pakistan. It will have a real impact that will still be felt for years to come, and will be one that the people of the Capital can be extremely proud of."
Mercy Corps has been operating in Pakistan since 1986, in many of the communities hardest-hit by this year's floods. The charity is providing emergency aid on the ground now, in the form of health clinics and distribution of food, water and clean-up equipment, but is also looking ahead to the long term needs of affected communities.
Edinburgh's Lord Provost George Grubb, who chairs the Edinburgh Disasters Response Committee said: "I'm pleased to have seen fast action from the British Government and aid agencies to deal with the immediate impact of this disaster. I would ask the people of Edinburgh to give everything they can to support Mercy Corps' efforts to provide assistance to communities beginning the long process of recovery. It will make a real difference to the lives of thousands of families in Pakistan. The capital has a long and proud tradition of reaching out to those in less fortunate circumstances, and I hope we will see that compassion and generosity in action as a response to this appeal."
How to help:
The Edinburgh Disasters Response Committee is calling on people in the city to donate to the appeal through Scottish aid charity Mercy Corps, at www.mercycorps.org.uk or by calling 0845 245 0686 between 9am and 5pm Monday to Friday.
ENDS
For further information contact Mercy Corps Scotland Press Officer Erin Gray: 0131 662 5164 / 0797532954, egray@uk.mercycorps.org
Notes to editors
The Edinburgh Disaster Response Committee was formed in 2009. In response to the earthquake that hit Haiti in January 2010, the Committee's appeal raised £430,000 to help earthquake survivors.
Mercy Corps is a non-religious international aid and development agency with European headquarters in Edinburgh. Mercy Corps reaches people in more than 40 countries around the world, supporting local people struggling amid disasters, conflicts, chronic poverty and instability to rebuild their communities and get back on their feet. Mercy Corps has over 3,700 staff worldwide and helps more than 14.4 million people each year. For more information visit www.mercycorps.org.uk
Appeals initiated by the arrangement with Mercy Corps are not intended to be exclusive routes for giving by either Council staff or members of the public. The arrangement also does not preclude the Council working with any other charities. Any communications will make clear that there may be other ways of giving, e.g. through other charities.
August 20, 2010 2:23AM
As flood waters continue raging, Scottish aid charity Mercy Corps ramps up operations in southern Pakistan
Erin Gray
Senior Media Communications Officer, European HQ
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As flood waters rise in southern Pakistan, Scottish aid charity Mercy Corps is quickly expanding efforts to assist families in four districts of Sindh Province. The Edinburgh-based aid agency is making multiple daily trips to displacement camps with water tankers, building latrines, and preparing to open two mobile health units to meet pressing medical needs. The United Nations estimates that 35 percent of Sindh Province is underwater and 2.5 million people in the province have been affected by the floods.
“This tragedy is unfolding from north to south. In the southern part of Pakistan, flood waters are still flowing in, rushing through communities, and creating tremendous destruction,” said Mercy Corps Pakistan Country Director Steve Claborne. “People are desperate and confused. They’re staying in crowded camps, with friends and family, or even camping out on roads or wherever they can find higher ground.”
The Mercy Corps team based in Sukkur reports that clean water is the most pressing need in Sindh Province. In response, the agency has started trucking water tankers into displacement camps three or four times daily, providing 250,000 litres of water per day for 15,000 people. In addition, Mercy Corps plans to bring multiple high-volume water filtration units to Sindh in the coming days, and is working closely with local organisations to determine how to best support their efforts.
Mercy Corps will also open two mobile health units in Sindh Province early next week to provide basic medical care for 300 people per day. The most pressing health needs are treatment of water-borne diseases such as gastro-intestinal problems and upper respiratory infections. Lack of clean drinking water and deplorable sanitation conditions threaten to create more widespread and serious outbreaks of disease.
“We will be faced with enormous public health challenges in the next four weeks,” explained Mercy Corps Director of Public Health Dr. Arif Noor. “This could get much worse if people do not receive adequate drinking water soon. We have not yet seen outbreaks of cholera, but we have seen many incidents of diarrhoea and other serious water-borne illnesses.”
Mercy Corps continues to meet needs in the hard-hit Swat Valley, where the agency is providing clean water for 10,000 people per day via water tanks, high-volume filtration units and water purification tablets. Mercy Corps is also delivering hundreds of food kits containing staples such as cooking oil, sugar, salt and rice, and tool kits with wheelbarrows, shovels, hammers and other tools needed for clean up and rebuilding efforts.
Mercy Corps has been working in Pakistan since 1986, running a range of health, economic development and emergency relief projects. The organisation was working in both Swat Valley and Sindh Province prior to the floods, focusing on a mix of boosting incomes, promoting health and caring for livestock.
How you can help:
Donate to the Mercy Corps Pakistan Emergency Fund:
- Online at www.mercycorps.org.uk
- Call 0845 245 0686
- Or send a cheque to Mercy Corps, 40 Sciennes, Edinburgh EH9 1NJ
July 9, 2010 12:21AM
Iraq recovery at risk without more effective aid, warn aid agencies
Erin Gray
Senior Media Communications Officer, European HQ
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A group of aid agencies has today warned that if aid support from the EU and UK government for Iraq continues to fall, it could pose a serious risk to the country’s recovery.
Seventeen international and national non-governmental organisations (NGOs), including UK-based Mercy Corps and the NGO Coordination Committee for Iraq (NCCI), today launched Fallen Off the Agenda? More and better aid needed for Iraq recovery, highlighting that Iraq is still extremely fragile, ranking in the top ten of the 2010 index of failed states (see note 1). It remains volatile, rife with corruption and is struggling to rebuild after decades of sanctions and war. Yet attention and support for Iraq is presently waning and budgets have been slashed. The European Commission and the United Kingdom, for example, have drastically reduced their aid budgets for Iraq (see note 2).
Mervyn Lee, Executive Director of Mercy Corps said:
“Iraq is at a critical and difficult juncture, struggling to rebuild itself, and without enough of the right kind of support the country could once again unravel. Effective aid delivery and development assistance from the international community is still absolutely necessary to prevent that from happening.
“The international community – and that includes us here in the UK and countries throughout the European Union – have a moral obligation to make sure millions of Iraqis have a fighting chance for a stable, secure future. Long-term commitment and large-scale investment is critical to help pull the people of Iraq back onto their feet.”
The Iraqi public sector remains seriously impaired, say the agencies, unable to deliver quality basic service such as water, electricity, adequate healthcare and war widows’ pensions to millions of people in the country. Despite the country’s oil reserves, the Government of Iraq does not yet have the capacity to effectively manage its potential, nor to efficiently respond to the most basic needs of the population. Furthermore, the government’s ability to deliver basic public services relies almost completely on global oil price fluctuations.
As a result, the agencies also called for aid to focus on developing and working in partnership with local Iraqi community and civil society organisations.
Fyraz Mawazini, Executive Coordinator of the NCCI, said:
“Working to support and develop Iraqi civil society organisations is absolutely critical to provide essential services to the population, at the same time as reinforcing the capacity of the government. This will strengthen Iraq's governance, the government’s accountability, and facilitate local communities’ participation in the recovery process, which is key to ensure sustainable progress and development. Many Iraqi community organisations do not have yet the maturity, capacity and means to take on humanitarian, development and human rights challenges alone. More cooperation and partnership with the international community is needed to build a comprehensive, strong and independent civil society in Iraq, leading to a fully fledged democracy and more stable future for the country as a whole.”
Note 1: The Failed States Index 2010, Foreign Policy and The Fund for Peace.
Note 2: The DFID budget for aid and development in Iraq, which was already seen as insufficient (£20 m for 2009-10), has been halved for 2010-11. In 2010, the European Commission budget for the development and cooperation with Iraq has also been halved (from €72.6 million for 2008 to €65,8 million Euros for 2009 and 2010). The European Commission budget for humanitarian aid for Iraq and for the 1.7 million Iraqi refugees in neighbouring countries in 2010 (€18 million) has also been reduced compared to last year (€20 million).
For further details (including a full list of the agencies involved in publishing this breifing) or to arrange an interview, contact Erin Gray, Mercy Corps European Headquarters Press Officer on 0131 662 5164 / 07917532954 or email egray@uk.mercycorps.org
