Earthquake in Nepal – Emergency Response
UPDATE: The Government of Canada announced that until May 25th it will match, dollar for dollar, donations to Canadian charitable organizations in support of relief efforts in Nepal. The matching will be retroactive to when donations first started streaming in on Saturday.
A powerful earthquake struck Nepal on the morning of April 25, 2015. The reports of deaths, injuries, and extensive damage caused to people’s homes and livelihoods are making it clear that this is a disaster of immense and growing scale. So far, at least 2,500 people are confirmed dead, and aid agencies are struggling to reach remote villages and towns near the epicentre of the earthquake. Food and water shortages are imminent, with approximately 30,000 people now living in makeshift camps outside Kathmandu. Read an analysis by Oxfam’s Shaheen Chughatai on the humanitarian response that is needed.
Support the Work of SCIC Members Responding to the Disaster
SCIC members and their partners are doing important and life-saving work on the ground in Nepal and bordering affected countries. Consider donating directly to our members and their partners who are working to support affected communities, listed below. You can also donate to the Saskatchewan Emergency Assistance Program, which is distributed by SCIC to our member organizations on an application basis. Select “Saskatchewan Emergency Assistance Program” from the drop down menu to specify funds.
ADRA Canada has committed to support the ADRA response and relief efforts in Nepal. The emergency response that is given in the immediate hours following a crisis like this is critical. We are calling on the help of our donors to meet this urgent need.
CLWR will be supporting Lutheran World Federation‘s aid efforts in Nepal. We will be issuing an fundraising appeal for the relief effort with the ELCIC on Monday April 27.
The Co-operative Development Foundation of Canada (CDF) is focusing on long-term recovery to enable credit unions and co-operatives to rebuild damaged buildings and restore services to their members. CDF will also work with other funding partners to leverage disaster relief and rehabilitation funding. Canadian co-operatives and credit unions have supported co-op development in Nepal for over two decades.
Development and Peace is receiving donations from the public to support the efforts of local organizations that meet the needs of victims.
effect:hope’s immediate relief response is targeted at supporting our implementing health and community partners on the ground in Nepal to provide basic needs and health treatment . These partners are strategically based at hospital compounds outside of Katmandu and near impacted vulnerable communities.
Each hospital has shifted their provision of health services from Leprosy focused to more comprehensive health related relief efforts and treatment. Our partners have been integrated into the government health response and are working closing alongside the Ministry of Health and the Health Army to provide health outreach services to remote regions in parallel to their hospitals intake.
HOPE International Development Agency is asking for donations so that we can begin helping families recover and rebuild their lives, even as disaster relief efforts continue.
MCC will be responding to the earthquake, and we welcome donations to this effort. We will provide more detail on our response as we assess the situation.
Oxfam is on the ground assessing humanitarian needs & technical experts are already providing clean water, sanitation and emergency food supplies. Oxfam Canada is a member of the Humanitarian Coalition.
Plan is on the ground in affected areas. Plan has been working in Nepal since 1978, with field offices in the areas of Kathmandu, Makwanpur and Baglun. Plan International Canada is a member of the Humanitarian Coalition.
Presbyterian World Service & Development (PWS&D) will be responding to the earthquake through existing networks and coalitions—including the ACT Alliance—to provide for some of the current major needs, including food, water, shelter and psycho-social support.
Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund (PWRDF) is accepting donations to support relief efforts through Lutheran World Federation and other ACT Alliance members at pwrdf.org/donate. Please indicate that your donation is for “Nepal Earthquake”.
Save the Children has some emergency kits, hygiene materials and tarpaulins already in Nepal and ready for distribution. They are on the ground assessing the needs of the thousands of people affected by the earthquake and providing emergency assistance in the form of shelter, clean water, food, medical aid, and other essentials. Save the Children Canada is a member of the Humanitarian Coalition.
UNICEF is responding to the needs of children and families affected by the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that has struck the area in and around the capital city of Kathmandu in Nepal.
USC Canada has been working in farming villages in Nepal since 1977, and is currently working to assess the new needs of partner communities – both immediate and especially for the long term. For survivors, water, shelter and food will be dire immediate issues. But restoring tools, roads and trails to fields and markets, and recovering livestock and seeds – all so very necessary to agrobiodiversity farming – is also urgent. We can assure you now that a donation to USC Canada today will go a long way toward helping Nepalese farmers get back on their feet.
World Renew is assessing with its partners how it can best respond to the great needs in Nepal and its neighboring countries. Given the devastation, World Renew will likely provide both immediate assistance in terms of food, water and temporary shelter as well as longer term rehabilitation as those affected recover and rebuild in the aftermath.
Photo: Some of the damage in Kathmandu valley. Laxmi Prasad Ngakhusi / UNDP Nepal. Used under Creative Commons License