Afghanistan Earthquake Relief and Recovery Fund

Nine months after the disastrous 7.5 earthquake that impacted eastern regions of Afghanistan and northern areas of Pakistan in October 2015, there is still ongoing work to rebuild and provide support to local communities. The aftermath of the earthquake killed nearly 400 people and left more than 2,000 injured. Families lost their homes and were displaced from their communities. The occurrence of natural disasters isn't new to this region. Afghanistan and Pakistan have faced earthquakes, flooding, and landslides for decades and now organizations are mobilized to supply goods and provide natural disaster preparedness courses in local communities.

Since our last update, several organizations that participated in the Afghanistan Earthquake Relief and Recovery Fund were able to reach their funding goals thanks to your generous donations!

• Aid Afghanistan for Education (AAE) disbursed all the donations to families in the Khash district of Badakhshan province, located in northeastern Afghanistan.
• The Afghan Institute of Learning provided aid to 100 families who lost everything and were displaced during the earthquake by supplying coolers, floor coverings, and blankets. In addition, the staff gave 500 books and notebooks to children and parents to assist them during the school year. This distribution of supplies concluded the Afghan Institute of Learning’s earthquake relief work.
• Sahar Education successfully repaired schools in Afghanistan that were affected by the earthquake. They are no longer accepting donations for the earthquake relief fund but have now shifted their focus to providing education to countless young women in Afghanistan.
• RedR is exclusively focusing on natural disaster preparedness in Pakistan. Going forward, they’ve set a goal in 2016 to help local communities become more knowledgeable on how to prepare for a disaster by delivering training to over 50 school teachers and conduct disaster-aware sessions. In return, teachers, parents, and children will be able to minimize the impact natural disasters place on communities.

• Before Concern Worldwide US fully funded their project, Afghanistan Earthquake: Concern's Response, they trained communities on basic construction techniques to make houses earthquake-resistant. The improvements were made by adding wooden braces to each corner of the house and by supporting the roof with a wooden plate.
• Though the International Medical Corps’ speedy emergency response to the October earthquake has ended in Afghanistan and Pakistan, teams remain in both areas to provide primary health care, reproductive health, gender-based violence prevention and treatment, and so much more, to improve the quality of life and health status of local men, women, and children.
• In February 2016, Dawood Global Foundation completed their project by distributing 875 blankets, 700 bottles of water and 42 boxes of biscuits to earthquake relief areas.

We are so fortunate to report a couple of organizations who are still accepting donations for local communities impacted by the earthquake.

• Local teams from CARE are continuing their project, Help Afghanistan Earthquake Victims Today, in central Afghanistan by delivering emergency supplies, including tents, solar lamps, blankets, cookware, and hygiene kits to 98 quake-affected families in the first week after the earthquake struck.
• Action for Development is also continuing their project, Emergency Appeal Earthquake Badakhshan Afghanistan, by supporting winterization efforts for households in three villages affected by the earthquake in Badakhshan province, who received firewood and multipurpose heaters.

Again, thanks to your support, these organizations were able to respond immediately to so many displaced women, men, and children and will be able to continue working toward full recovery from the earthquake in these regions. To continue giving to these organizations, please see the GlobalGiving Afghanistan Earthquake Relief and Recovery Fund.

Warmly,

Ashlee Cox + the GlobalGiving Team