The acute humanitarian crisis in Zimbabwe continued in 2009, with half of the population reliant on food aid to survive.
Tuberculosis affects a large number of people in North Korea. The country’s international isolation and poverty mean drug supply is unreliable. Resistance to tuberculosis can develop if patients receive inconsistent or partial treatment. If multi-drug resistant TB (MDR-TB) does occur, it can be harder and more expensive to treat. Caritas is one of the few ...
In early 2009, the 25-year-old conflict between the Tamil rebels and the government of Sri Lanka reached a bloody end. Up to 250,000 people were trapped between the two sides in the final stages of the war. Caritas was one of the few aid agencies given permission to work in the combat zone throughout the ...
“I am lucky,” said Elma, while getting treatment with her daughter in a medical tent supported by Caritas. “My family and I – we are alive.” When a violent earthquake struck the Indonesian island of Sumatra near the city of Padang on September 30, Elma was at home with her elderly mother.
The newest member of the confederation, Caritas Samoa, found itself coping with a major emergency when a tsunami hit the Pacific Islands of Samoa, American Samoa and Tonga in September.
Caritas Internationalis works in Darfur in cooperation with Action by Churches Together (ACT) helping 350,000 people, including 240,000 who have lost their homes. The implementing partner, Norwegian Church Aid, has two national Sudanese partners, the Sudan Council of Churches and Sudanaid (Caritas Sudan). Miriam is a tailoring teacher in Bilel Camp, one of Darfur’s relief ...
More than three million people have been forced from their homes in Colombia. Fighting continues to affect people from all walks of life. The large number of displaced people hinders efforts at making peace. While Colombia has the second largest number of internally displaced people in the world after Sudan, it still does not have ...
Caritas Bangladesh builds shelters that offer protection when cyclones hit. They work with villagers to make sure that everyone knows about evacuation plans and that there is enough food to last through the storms. Tanjibul Hussain Sujon is a community volunteer in Bangladesh. He said, “There is a group of us who keep in touch ...
More than two and a half million people were forced from their homes as a result of clashes between the Pakistan army and militants in the Swat Valley. The district used to be known as the ‘Switzerland of Pakistan’ and attracted thousands of tourists who came for skiing and mountain walking – but that was ...
By Edwyn Shiell, Act for Peace – Campaigns & Communication Coordinator (Australia) The sense that there is life beyond a state of emergency in the camps is growing in Bilel camp in Darfur. People are becoming involved with the community centres and vocational training is becoming more and more common. Though insecurity is still rife, ...