GVI Charitable Trust

Emergency supplies being unloaded in Nadi

On Sunday the 8th of April all GVI Volunteers and Staff returned to the mainland to take part in disaster relief efforts following the recent flooding disaster in the western district of Viti Levu. A temporary base was currently set up in Martintar near Nadi Town and we have been deploying volunteers to the field with the Red Cross for the past week to perform disaster damage assessments and to distribute aid packs. GVIs partnership with the Red Cross has enabled us to provide much needed human resources in response to what has been Fiji’s most widespread and devastating flood. The Yasawa Trust Foundation were hugely supportive and provided both the Red Cross and GVI with transport solutions throughout the program here on the mainland.

Over the past 5 days our volunteers have visited dozens of different areas and assessed the needs of hundreds of families. Dr Mohammed Yunush, the president of Nadi Red Cross asked GVI directors to accept his sincere appreciation for the ongoing support and invited resident staff to join the Red Cross as permanent members. Our blue t-shirts branded with bold red crosses were seen all over Nadi this week from the rural southern settlements to the outer urban areas. SUV’s, trucks, vans, and buses unloaded our teams at various drop points in a military fashion. Houses were surveyed, villagers interviewed, and data collected. In other areas hundreds of boxes were loaded and unloaded. Water sanitation packs from Unicef, hygiene packs from AusAid, clothing, cookware, tarpaulins – were hand distributed to each assessed family.

The damage to personal property and homes has been extensive. The experience of visiting these areas and assessing the damage has been very moving for all involved as we have seen first hand the losses of individuals. In a country where people have very little and live in homes that are extremely vulnerable, in an area still recovering from the January floods, this most recent flood has taken a serious toll on the people of the western district. Please help us fund-raise to ensure that those affected by this disaster have the support they need to recover. Please follow this link for further information on how to give to this cause: http://www.gvi.org/disaster-recovery-fiji

Flood waters in Nadi, Fiji

On Friday the 30th of March 2012, the Western Division of Fiji experienced some of the worse flooding in recent history. Today over 11,000 people are living in basic evacuation centres, their homes destroyed by flood waters. Thousands are without electricity and running water. Many people lost their livelihoods and homes in a matter of hours without warning. Supply chains have been disrupted, buildings destroyed and infrastructure damaged, and there are fears that water born diseases will result in a health crisis.

Thousands of Fijians have been affected by the floods; many have been forced from their homes or have lost their livelihoods and the education of tens of thousands of children is under threat. When the waters finally recede, people will return to their homes and communities, where they will face a long, slow rebuilding process. The number of people at evacuation centres continues to increase, and health authorities in the Western Division have expressed concern that overcrowding and unsanitary practices could lead to an outbreak of disease.

GVI Charitable Trust has hence hence launched a disaster recovery campaign, to raise money to help fund:

-       Health initiatives to help reduce the opportunities for the development of water born diseases

-       Support the Evacuation Centre support in distribution of food and logistics

-       Support of both young and elderly community memebers

-       Village clean up crews

-       Rebuilding of schools and community centers

-       Business recovery support

Anyone interested in donating or seeking more information should visit the project page for me details: http://www.gvi.org/disaster-recovery-fiji

Recent donations to our project English Lessons for Young Adults in Laos have funded the sponsorship of 9 novice monks from Wat Pasa Viet for 12 months of English lessons in 2012. 3 of the 9 monks will be progressing onto their second year of study at the Mekong English Centre in Luang Prabrang. The other 6 monks will be commencing their first year of study.

Each sponsored novice was selected by the Abbot of the temple who considered the qualities of a hard working student and their disadvantaged background. The beneficiaries of the sponsorship come from families who would not be able to fund the cost of further education for their sons leaving them at a disadvantage.

English language is an important requisite for further education opening future opportunities for gainful employment. As such these funds will make a tangible difference for these monks and their families.

In addition, recent donations have been used to tile the floors of classrooms at the centre, a request from our partners. This simple improvement will create a much comfortable environment in which to learn.

On our project Alternative livelihoods for Ex Poachers in Kenya, donations to the GVI Charitable Trust funded a Posho mill as part of a food security initiative for the community of Mahandakini. Posho Mills are used to grind maize into flour, the main food staple in Kenya.

The aim was that the Posho Mill would bring down food costs for local people and then act as a source of income through the sale of flour. Julie Dawson, GVI Tsavo West Sustainable Development Officer shares this  update from the field:

‘The posho mill has now been operating on a daily basis since May 2011. GVI volunteers and staff have been teaching the The Mahandikini Network for Animal Rights how to keep and analyse operational and financial records. This is to insure the group maximise their profits and maintain good accounting standards and transparency in their books.

Lately the Mahandikini group have been focusing on building up a larger client base. At the moment their profit margin is high but the number of customers is low. This is in part, due to the current high cost of Maize in the area. They have started to  advertise the Mill and Grainstore by placing signage on the road from Taveta to Nairobi which passes the Mill and also using the members to spread the word through local churches and other community groups.’

2011 was an incredible year for GVI Charitable Trust challenges on our programs around the world. 2012 may have only just started but we are already planning events with participants working hard to raise funds for our programs. Right now a team of GVI staff and volunteers in India are hiking to raise funds for our work in Kerala. We will share news on their progress when they return and recover!

Upcoming events include:

Ecuador Cotopaxi Volcano Challenge February 2012
Guatemala Sierra De Las Minas Trek Challenge February 2012
Guatemala Rio Dulce Kayak Challenge March 2012
Australia Mount Difficult Challenge March 2012

In addition many of our supporters are getting involved in and organising amazing events to support our work. GVI Charitable Trust fundraisers are running the London and Brighton marathons, cycling from London to Paris, organising Salsa dance competitions and more!

Best of luck to all of our supporters with their training, organising and fundraising and thank you so much for your support! We look forward to sharing news from our projects to show how you are making an impact.

As January runs away with us the project is back into the full swing of things in Kerala, India. Recent support for this project, particularly that from UK based food and drinks company Marston Foods, has helped us to further develop the sports program with a focus on providing sports shoes and clothing for children who could not afford them. Previously many of the children would need to play sports bare foot leading to injury, broken nails. Cuts and bruises were common, the new shoes help to prevent injury and enhance the performance of the children providing more enjoyment. The sports clothing means the children do not have to play in their uniforms making them sweaty and dirty, the sports clothes also bring a sense of team spirit as they have unified colours and numbers.

India project manager Ridhi Patel explains:

The donation money has been used for purchasing items that will be beneficial to the school and the children in the long term. The sports equipment is essential so the children have the right kit to play with. The sports coach is also important for the school to provide some structure to sports lessons. In the long term we hope to help the students become more active and confident, practise sports and participate in competitions, all of which is important for their development and growth. There are also a lot of talented children who need the right guidance and given the equipment they could grow up to be successful sportsmen/women.’

Funds also enabled us to construct a fence around the sports field. The area in the corner of the sports field had been used to dispose of rubbish bringing a dangerous and unhygienic situation for children playing in the field. Often the ball would roll into the area where rubbish was dumped meaning that the children would be exposed to it. Fencing off the area helps to contain the game on the field and separate the children from this danger.

Thank you to everyone who has supported this project.

Thanks to your amazing support for our project in Kenya you have helped us to achieve an important and long held goal at the Olives Rehabilitation Centre. Recent donations have been used to build movable classrooms on the ORC church property, these classes will be used for junior Kindergarten classes making way at the main school for the first ever Standard 8 Class!

GVI Kenya Country Director Tessa Doogue explains:

‘The impact of this donation cannot be overstated. Since it’s inception in 2001, Olive Rehabilitation Centre’s goal has been to somehow hold on to their students to the end of standard 8. Standard 8 is a significant year because at the completion of the year, students are eligible to sit their Kenyan Certificate of Primary Education (KPCE). Without this basic qualification, it is extremely difficult to enter into the most basic paid work roles after school (for instance unskilled labour, house cleaning or the hospitality/tourism industry). Up until now, at the end of standard 7 students had to leave ORC due to a lack of space to hold another classroom. For the first time in ORC history, they will now have a full class of 20 students sitting (and hopefully obtaining) this qualification. In the words of Principal Michael Nyundo, this is “truly a dream realised”. Upon obtaining their KPCE, it will also set these students up as ideal candidates for high school sponsorship, something which has been extremely difficult to achieve without their KPCE qualification’

This really is an incredible step for GVI and our partners, thank you to everyone who has supported this project to make this possible.