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Since
a tidal wave displaced almost 3,000 people in the Volta
region, eastern Ghana, The GRCS (Ghana Red Cross Society)
realized, sadly, that they were broke because of
mobilization of stuffs, salaries (u$s 200,000 per month) and
administration costs were too much. National funds decreased
from u$s700,000 per year in 2004 to u$s100,000 in 2008. Contributions
from businesses, NGOs and fundraising appeals make up the
rest, but these sources are also drying up.
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A
Red Cross that cannot move its volunteers is something
very frustrating. They are a vital factor in help
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Secretary
General of the GRCS, Andrews Frimpong said “We are down
completely…it is very frustrating…As it stands now we can only
take care of less than a thousand victims in the case of a
disaster.”
Now the staff possesses only a few Wellington boots, 500
plastic sheets and 300 tents.
Red
Cross has 1,000 volunteers that help with projects. The GRCS was
established by an act of parliament that mandates the government
to support the funding of its operations.
But
Sepa Yankey, Ghana’s Health Minister, which currently supervises
the GRCS said that the government cannot do it all. Also
he said “There
are so many more pressing developmental issues confronting this
country that we have little room to accommodate humanitarian
issues.”
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Editor:
Daniel Paz,
Salta, Argentina
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NDYS
Youth Editors
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| Topics
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Disaster
Reduction
and
Climate Change
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The
Zambezi river is causing troubles again.
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Many
people are isolated from dry camps. UN agencies
commute them to safe camps and deliver food and
stuffs to remote communities.
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Water
from the Zambezi, Chobe and Kwando rivers increased rapidly
their levels displacing more than 19,000 people who were
evacuated form the Caprivi Strip, northeastern Namibia, to
relocated camps. Namibia launched a rescue plan for children
marooned by the floodwaters at a boarding school in the
Caprivi Strip.
The
affected countries are Namibia, Zambia, Botswana and Angola
in where crops and buildings where destroyed. There are 90
dead people in Namibia and 350,000 people affected as a
result of a total research. The government of this country
has designated u$s 10.9 million for disaster response
efforts and the state of emergency is now declared.
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In
Zambia cholera cases are increasing, it I sad to say that
from September 2008 to March 2009, 140 people died because
of it. 21 is the death toll in Angola and more than 200,00
people were affected. The government has rapidly designated
the amount of u$s10 million for flood response while UN
agencies have allocated u$s600,00 of their own funding.
Source:
www.irinews.org
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