At the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), we believe that diversity is a fact, inclusion is an act. Through all of our work, we aim to protect and promote a positive change for humanity, based on our humanitarian values and Fundamental Principles.
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is deeply committed to creating a safe, respectful and dignified environment for the communities we serve and for all our volunteers and staff.
Nairobi/Geneva, 5 July 2021 - The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Africa Region is calling on its partners to do more to protect children amid increasing vulnerabilities due to climate-related disasters. This call comes ahead of the upcoming Africa Dialogue/Anticipatory Action event. MohammedMukhier, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies’ (IFRC) Regional Director for Africa said: “As drought and food insecurity take hold, we see again that Africa is one of the most vulnerable regions to the effects of climate change and its related disasters. IFRC is deeply concerned about the disproportionate level of protection risks against children across Africa posed by climate related disasters. Anticipating need and taking effective action is essential.” IFRC is calling on all humanitarian actors to do a better job at preventing children from increased violence, abuse and exploitation. IFRC’s study, “We Need To Do Better” shows that climate related disasters puts pressure on protective systems, leaving families in desperate situations, and reducing children’s chances of shaping their own futures. Mukhier added: “Climate change related extreme weather and rising temperatures have increased the frequency of droughts and floods in Africa and around the world, leading to knock-on effects such as economic hardship, child labour, severe malnutrition, lack of access to clean water and WASH facilities, child marriage and lower school attendance. The consequences of these are felt today and will continue to undermine children’s protection for years to come. We need to invest more in preventative action including anticipatory action with a specific lens on child protection.” Presently, the menace of floods, COVID-19, conflict, and locusts in parts of the African region, linked to the warming climate, is a key example of the risks. Yet, this may worsen in the coming months, especially between June and August 2021, with the exacerbation of food insecurity. Furthermore, climate related displacement is a significant concern. Rapid and slow onset environmental degradation diminishes living conditions, forcing families to leave their homes and often separate from their children. Many children are also forced to reside in unsafe refugee and IDP camps in countries across the continent where they are at risk of trafficking, recruitment into armed groups and sexual violence. Climate related disasters in the region also threaten children’s access to school including through forcing schools to close, intensifying dropouts, families having to choose between school and livelihoods, and making transport and access to school hard for the poorest. This is already happening in Eastern and Southern Africa, where around 28 per cent of the children are unable to attend school. The lowest attendance rates are observed in the Horn, where climate related disasters are particularly prevalent. School attendance is vital for children because—apart from education—learning institutions provide an environment that protects children from abuse, violence and exploitation. Children’s mental health is also affected by the short and long-term impacts of repeated disasters. Instability and separation from family can exacerbate the stress and trauma of the experience. Psycho-social support is crucial for the emotional wellbeing, mental health and development of children. Girls are at particular risk in climate related disasters as they experience unequal access to school, resources and decision-making, particularly in areas facing severe poverty. During and after climate related disasters, girls are more vulnerable to sexual abuse, exploitation, and trafficking. Child marriage, for example, may be used as a coping mechanism by families who experience economic hardship induced by environmental disasters. Girls who are married are at risk of physical and sexual abuse, poor nutrition, and increased chance of maternal neonatal death. Mukhier called for a more proactive approach: “Local humanitarian actors need to take urgent, coordinated, and preventative actions to better protect children from the dire consequences of climate related disasters in the Africa region. We need to better anticipate protection needs and take practical actions. Children have not contributed to the climate crisis and yet they carry its heaviest burdens today and for the decades to come. We need to do better to ensure we work with children as partners and prioritize their protection and education.” The IFRC urges humanitarian actors to: (1) recognize the impact of climate change related disasters on children; (2) invest in child protection and education systems, including localized coordination mechanisms; (3) include children, both boys and girls, in climate disaster related decision-making processes and the development of local solutions; and (4) prioritize anticipatory action to protect children from the impacts of climate disasters.
International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women reminds us that for tens of millions of women and children around the world, ‘home’ is a place of fear and violence. Evidence suggests COVID-19 is making things worse. We cannot wait for the full picture. We must plan, invest and act now to increase services that support survivors. In ‘ordinary’ times, 40 per cent of women in South-East Asia over one third (37%) of women in South Asia and more than two thirds of women in the Pacific experience violence at some time in their lives, at the hands of people who claim to love them. Eleven months into this COVID-19 pandemic, early reports in Asia and the Pacific reveal rates are skyrocketing. Police reports in China indicate a 30 per cent increase in reported cases of violence during lockdown. Family violence hotlines are reporting surging numbers of calls, including increases of 137 per cent in Singapore, 150 per cent in Samoa, and 30 per cent in Melbourne. It’s even more horrifying that these statistics are the tip of the iceberg. The majority of violence against women goes unreported and COVID-19 restrictions are forcing many women and children already in abusive situations into closer quarters with their abusers. Many support services are overwhelmed, not operating or harder to access. Making matters worse, communities across Asia have been battered by a devastating string of disasters. Millions have been forced to live in temporary shelters with limited access to basic services, adding to the risk of violence. There are more than 7.6 million Red Cross and Red Crescent volunteers in Asia and the Pacific and our teams are reporting increases in family violence, sexual abuse and violations of child rights. It is critical that we collect more accurate data and rapidly adapt our approaches. We must provide accessible information and effectively support anyone needing help. Trained community volunteers have unparalleled links with communities. They play a crucial role in understanding, monitoring and preventing increased risks of violence against women by identifying people who are most vulnerable, potential violations, and taking appropriate action to help people. It’s our combined responsibility to prevent gender-based violence and respond effectively when it occurs. These efforts must be integrated at all levels by governments and humanitarian agencies into pandemic response plans and activities. We cannot let COVID-19 undermine our hard-won progress. Too many lives are at stake.
By: Dr Michael Charles Today South Africa marks Women’s Day. Much like the women being commemorated for the march to the Union Buildings on 9 August 1956, women in southern Africa today may well hold the same flint that lights a “new movement” – climate change. Southern Africa is one of the regions projected to experience the most serious consequences of global warming and the El Niño effect. In 2019, we experienced one of the worst disasters the region has ever seen - Cyclone Idai ravaged communities in Mozambique, Malawi, and Zimbabwe and continue to rebuild their lives. Urgent action is needed to increase the region’s preparedness for natural disasters. It is only a matter of time until the next disaster strikes. Being female often automatically means that personal susceptibility to sexual and domestic violence, rape and assault in emergency situations is significantly heightened. Women experience additional difficulties because they are typically responsible for sourcing water and preparing food; caring for children, the injured, sick and elderly; and maintaining family and community cohesion. Tackling climate change is, undoubtedly, women’s business. They have a vested interest in avoiding and mitigating the impacts of climate change. It is time that humanitarian actors and policy and decision-makers mainstream gender in policy and practice. It is not a “nice to do”; it is crucial to making real and sustainable differences in the lives of affected people. In 1956, 200,000 South African women declared that enough was enough and acted to defend themselves and the unity and integrity of their families from restrictive laws that required them to carry a pass to reside and move freely in urban areas. Wathint'Abafazi Wathint'imbokodo! Now you have touched the women, you have struck a rock! was the rallying cry of that day, used to signify the women’s unshakeable and unbreakable resolve in the face of adversity as they marched to the Union Building in Pretoria, and sparked change in the course of South Africa’s history. As countries in southern Africa ramp up their disaster risk management and humanitarian organisations work to strengthen community recovery and resilience, women in southern Africa should not just be considered victims and survivors who need special protection and assistance. They are forces for change who can be relied on to represent themselves within their communities and at the highest decision-making levels. I am always inspired by the women I meet responding in disasters, most recently in Cyclone Idai. Women like, Sonia, a volunteer who was working long hours to support women in a shelter, displaced by Cyclone Idai or Flora, who was affected herself by flooding but was dedicated to helping her neighbours rebuild their homes and their lives. Happy Women’s Day, South Africa. May the flame that was lit in 1956 and the fire of women’s empowerment and participation that was built over the decades rage on.
“It is emotional work. When children arrive they are so exhausted and need time to rest, play and not be seen as migrants,” says William Guerra. He is a volunteer with the Ecuador Red Cross supporting a safe space for children in the town of Lago Agrio, in the Province of Sucumbíos, which is a border point with Colombia. Many of the migrant children and families who arrive at the border come to Colombia from Venezuela as their country experiences severe political and economic distress. The numbers of children who cross this border point can fluctuate each day. Recently there have been as many as thirty and forty children each day, many with a parent or grandparent, but some also migrating alone. In response to the needs faced by migrant children, the Ecuador Red Cross implements 14 safe spaces in 11 provinces across the country. It also has additional mobile safe spaces it deploys when the number of migrants increase. The mobile spaces support children as they walk for long distances in hard to access locations. Marisol Pallo, another volunteer in Lago Agrio explains that each safe space provides an assortment of humanitarian services to children and families that seek to improve psychosocial wellbeing and protection. “We see that children here have many needs so we help with first aid, restoring family links, discussing child rights, play, and just let children be surrounded by normal things. We also provide shoes to replace the broken and worn down ones.” Marisol notes, “We need to work hard because we know this is not normal and childhood should not be this way.” Priscila Naranjo, a local college student who volunteers at the safe space, tell us, “We see so many bad stories about migrants in the news but the reality is so different. Here you see the humanitarian needs and that these are just children like all other children.”
Geneva/New York, 11 January 2018 – The following can be attributed to Francesco Rocca, President of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC): “We welcome the report launched today by UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, and his Special Representative for International Migration, Louise Arbour. We thank Mr Guterres and Ms Arbour for their leadership. “The violence, abuse and death that people face when migrating are preventable. The Red Cross and Red Crescent does not engage in debates about whether there should be more migration or less migration. We care about the safety and dignity of people, wherever they are. Migrants have the same human rights as everyone else. All people migrating should have unfettered access to essential services and humanitarian aid, as well as special protections for those most at risk, especially unaccompanied children. “World leaders must act to stop death, despair and abuse along migration trails. “We are happy to see that the safety and dignity of all migrants – of all people –are prominent in the report. It is our hope now that governments will adopt a Global Compact on Migration that delivers tangible, time-bound and compassionate outcomes for all migrants, regardless of their status.”
