International Humanitarian Support

INTERNATIONAL HUMANITARIAN SUPPORT

Despite the restrictions of our activities during the pandemic, we have been able to continue with our international Humanitarian Support.   At the forefront of our minds at the moment is aid for the Ukrainian people but we have not ignored the needs of others.

£1,500 DONATION TO UKRAINE APPEAL
On 30th January we had a great Ukraine-Scotland social evening in association with Inverurie Academy, Ythan Valley Rotary and RC Kharkiv International.  We achieved our goal of getting to know more from our Ukrainian guests and enjoyed a real cultural exchange with many new contacts being made.   A big thankyou to everyone who turned up, to all the entertainers and to the helpers who made it a great success.    Not only did we have a very enjoyable evening, but we also raised a substantial amount of money for our Ukraine Appeal through your generous donations.   

After all the bills were paid, we have been able to donate £1,500 which will go to purchase of laptops for children in Ukraine.  These are sorely needed for distance learning as this is the only way many of the children can be educated because of the war conditions.

UGANDA HOSPITAL FOETAL HEART RATE MONITOR 
In December 2022 we donated £520 to the Mulajje Health Clinic in Uganda.   With the high number of births at the Clinic the staff was anxious to have Doppler Foetal Heart Monitor to allow for the monitoring of heart beat in a foetus from the early stages to birth. 

As our club has previously made a substantial investment in the upgrading of the Clinic which has resulted in an increase in its use.  The Clinic covers a population of over 11,000 and we hope that as it is improved and use increased the argument for the Ugandan Government to provide a full-time doctor will get stronger. 

Covid remains a problem in the country which also has cases of the Ebola virus and certain areas are now in lockdown. There have been over 50 deaths as a result of Ebola recently (November 2022).

UKRANIAN APPEAL
At the outset of the ongoing war, we sent a donation of £500 to the Red Cross Appeal for the Ukraine.  We are looking into what additional help the club could offer and have been in contact with Aberdeenshire Council to express our willingness to assist Ukrainian refugees who may be relocated to this area.

SHELTER BOX
Following a donation of £500 to the club, we provided funds for another Shelter Box.

MULAJJE, UGANDA
We responded to two appeals.   The first was to provide some financial assistance to a disabled group in Monde to enable the members to develop opportunities for self-support as no financial benefits are provided by the Government. A sum of £300 was donated.  The second was for the purchase of desks for Monde school as the school roll had risen post Covid. This increase is due to pupils returning to school post Covid to finish their education as well as the enrolment of new children. Five desks, at a cost of £300 were purchased. These desks are suitable for 4 per desk.

TOILET TWINNING
It is estimated 2 billion people worldwide do not have a safe hygienic toilet.  A donation of £500 was sent to the charity Toilet Twinning. This has provided toilets for 4 individual families and a toilet block at a school in Jaravikuba in Mzimba District of Malawi.

TOOLS FOR SELF RELIANCE
During the year an opportunity arose to collect tools which could usefully be refurbished and sent to Camphill Trust. Once refurbished these tools are currently being sent to Tools and Training for Education and Livelihood in Malawi.  A club member has sharpened a number of saws on behalf of Camphill and we have cooperated with the Inverurie Men's Shed in procuring tools.

LONG TERM SUPPORT

We have been supporting international activities since 1953 and our programme continued despite the restrictions imposed by the Covid-19 pandemic.  Our long-term support of humanitarian aid includes:

• WaterAid to get safe water, sanitation and hygiene to everybody everywhere.
• Mercy Ships to bring a state-of-the-art hospital to regions where medical facilities are limited or non-existent.
• Financing over 40 ShelterBoxes giving emergency shelter to families suffering after natural disasters or conflict.
• Providing funds to help to support Australian volunteer Rural Fire Service after devastating bushfires.
• Two projects in Uganda - refurbishment and extension of a Primary School and ongoing improvements to a Health Clinic.
• End Polio Now campaign.   In the 35 years since the programme began, we have donated around £40,000.

If you’re interested to join either click on the MEMBERSHIP ENQUIRY via the red box at the foot of the Main Club page, send us a message via our Facebook page, contact any of our club members you may know or email us direct at dl43@btinternet.com and we’ll get back to you.