At a special ceremony held during its General Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) honoured recipients of the Henry Davison Award, the 'Youth on the move' Award and the Volunteering Award for their exceptional contribution to the organization's humanitarian mission.
HENRY DAVISON AWARD
The Henry Davison Award, named after the IFRC's founder, recognizes outstanding service in improving the lives of vulnerable people. It was given to five recipients:
Dr. Jean Elisabeth Calder, Palestine Red Crescent Society, has volunteered for almost three decades to improve the lives of children with disabilities in Lebanon, Egypt and the Gaza Strip. For the last 10 years, she has developed a rehabilitation programme, improving the lives of hundreds of children with disabilities.
An active volunteer of the Red Cross of Benin since 1963, Mr. Hilarion Quenum initiated the working group "Groupe de Lome", which facilitated co-operation and collaboration between National Societies of this region of Africa and promoted capacity-building.
Mr. Tilahun Bishane served as a member of the Ethiopian Red Cross Society National Board for 10 years. He helped establish the first cardiac centre in Ethiopia to provide free medical services to children with heart disease. Mr. Bishane also contributed to the dissemination of the seven fundamental principles and the Geneva Conventions.
Mrs. Barbro O'Connor, Swedish Red Cross, has made it possible for more than 3,000 survivors of torture to regain health, dignity and trust through the provision of medical treatment and rehabilitation services along with education and advocacy.
Dr. Ahmed Mohamed Hassan, through his very active participation as a member of the Federation Commissions and Advisory Bodies and as a Governing Board member, has always advocated for vulnerable communities and the powerful role of volunteers. Dr. Ahmed's many years of experience as a leading volunteer have helped him to guide and advise the IFRC in East Africa.
'YOUTH ON THE MOVE' AWARD
To reward and profile the work of Red Cross and Red Crescent youth in their community, the IFRC honoured six National Society projects with the 'Youth on the move' award.
The Sierra Leone Red Cross received best of class in the category "Live our principles, celebrate our diversity, change our community," for its peer education programme, which focused on strengthening the capacity of vulnerable youth to face socio-economic development challenges. This programme teaches youth functional and behavioural skills through training in agriculture, carpentry, masonry and weaving.
Also receiving an award in this category is the Gambia Red Cross and its Afromanding musical band, which seeks to empower talented youth to take an active role in tackling issues such as unemployment and drug and substance abuse. By teaching livelihood skills and providing a musical platform, youth are able to stand up for their ideals and causes.
The IFRC has given the Indonesia Red Cross the lead award in the category "Healthy youth make a healthy world." Inspired by the recognition of mental health issues linked to the Indian Ocean tsunami, this innovative programme helps youth learn and practise a participatory approach to support their peers and increase their knowledge of healthy life practices.
The Côte d'Ivoire Red Cross earned an award for its programme focused on youth and HIV. This project aims to educate young people about the harm related to substance abuse, the value of peer education and the importance of community involvement.
In the third and final category, 'Adapting to climate change and addressing catastrophes', the Kenya Red Cross (Kwale Branch) received top honours for a programme, which builds community resilience and drought recovery. Taking advantage of El Niño rains, the Kenya Red Cross youth plant trees around homes and schools.
In addition, the Nakuru branch of the Kenya Red Cross received an award to create awareness among youth on climate change and environmental conservation.
VOLUNTEERING AWARD
The Volunteering Award is designed to recognize National Societies, which have shown commitment and progress in the development of their volunteer management programmes. This year, the recipient is the Mali Red Cross, which successfully established a volunteer management system to better support their volunteers, especially at the community level.