[Original by Ko IMANAKA, Sudan Project (May 7, 2020); Translated by E. Miyazaki/A. Taguchi] The COVID-19 global pandemic has now reached Sudan. By today (May 6th), the number of infected persons and the number of those who died have reached 852 and 49, respectively. I will report on the current status of infection, the government’s countermeasures, and the opinions/situation coming from the city. Trends in the number of infected persons and the government’s drastic action The speed of action of the Sudanese government is much faster than that of the Japanese government. To prevent clusters of infection, many countries in Africa including Sudan are taking forceful measures at an early…
Report about urgent aid for novel coronavirus (COVID-19) @ Cambodia
[Original by Mariko OMURA, Cambodia Project (May 7, 2020); Translated by J. Tsuchiya/M. Olagoke] I am Mariko Omura, the JVC Cambodia Office Representative. I continue to work remotely from Japan in concert with the staff in Cambodia. For more than 3 weeks, no new COVID-19 infections! The Cambodian Ministry of Health reported on May 4 that there has been no new infected person since April 13 up till today. The total number of cases is 122 with 120 recovered and 2 still remaining in hospital. Most infections were imported. I really hope the decreasing trend will continue. A survey in our operation villages and the results Currently, the local staff…
In Response to the New Coronavirus Epidemic: Status of our Activity Areas and Message to Everyone (April 24, 2020)
To everyone who has always supported JVC’s activities in various ways. We know that you are worried because of the outbreak of the new coronavirus (COVID-19). We sincerely hope for the safety of all of you and your loved ones. On behalf of the entire staff, I would like to express my gratitude to all those who, even under these circumstances, have sent their words of sympathy to the staff and expressed their support by saying, “We support you in times like these.” Thank you so much for sharing your sympathy with JVC and the people of the world during this difficult time. JVC is concerned that, in addition to…
A follow-up report about the COVID-19 Prevention Campaign in Afghanistan!
[Original by Maki KATO, Afghanistan Project (April 9, 2020); Translated by J. Tsuchiya/A. Taguchi] As I have written in my previous article, YVO, our partner organization in Afghanistan, has launched an activity to prevent the spread of COVID-19 infection. In Afghanistan, Herat Province, which borders Iran has the largest number of cases, followed by Kabul, the capital. Nangarhar Province, our operation site, has recorded only a few confirmed cases, but the situation is unpredictable because there are patients who haven’t yet been tested, and hygiene and medical facilities in the region are scarce and difficult to access. The villagers who take part in the volunteer work for the prevention activities…
Extension of the temporary closure of the JVC Tokyo office due to COVID-19
In view of the current situation of COVID-19 infections and the request by the government on the activities of citizens, we have decided to extend the temporary closure of our office to May 31, 2020 (as of April 24, 2020).
YVO, our partner organization in Afghanistan, has started prevention activities against the spread of COVID-19 infection!
[Original by Maki KATO, Afghanistan Project (April 2, 2020); Translated by J. Tsuchiya/A. Taguchi] On the 1st of April, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported that Afghanistan has seen 196 cases of COVID-19 and 5 deaths nationwide. It is urgent to prevent the spread of the infection. Especially in rural areas far from big cities, people bear more psychological burdens because they have less access to information. Many people are very anxious that they might be infected. Afghanistan faces a high risk from a pandemic, especially because the long-standing conflicts have prevented the country from organizing public health and sanitation. It also has a border with Iran which is reported…
A daughter’s dream, a mother’s dream – Voices of the first graduates from the literacy classroom –
[Original by Maki KATO, Afghanistan Project (March 10, 2020); Translated by K. Adachi/M. Olagoke] JVC works for the educational activities in Afghanistan together with a local partner organization YVO. Men and women over 15 years old learn reading and writing of a local major language; Pashto, and mathematics for 9 months. They aim for the educational level equivalent to the third grade of public elementary schools in Afghanistan. We have a system to cooperate with whole villages, where villagers also participate in selecting teachers and the location of classrooms. What is unique to this is that we do not call teachers from outside but select them from among villagers. This…
Why can’t people put Christmas trees away?
Behind-the-scenes story related to Christmas in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip [Original by Yoriko YAMAMURA, Palestine Project (January 28, 2020); Translated by H. Ueda/A. Taguchi] What comes to your mind when you hear the word Christmas? It is widely recognized by the Japanese that December 24 is Christmas Eve and the 25th is Christmas Day. After the 25th, people in Japan put away Christmas trees and put up New Year decorations instead. However, things are slightly different in the Holy City of Jerusalem. In Jerusalem, Christmas decorations including Christmas trees remain here and there even after the 25th. The same scene can be seen in the West…
At the end of the 4-year Project: The Growth of the Children Observed at the Symposium
[Original by Syunya NAKAMURA, Intern of the Palestine Project/ Yoriko YAMAMURA, Palestine Project (February 25, 2020); Translated by J. Sparks] On February 4th, a symposium was held in the theater room of a partner organization in Ramallah, the center of the West Bank, to conclude the East Jerusalem project, which JVC has supported for four years. The project has been implemented in order to improve both the resilience of the Palestinian youth living in East Jerusalem and the health environment in the community by cooperating with local NGOs. Resilience is “the power to flexibly come back from events or encounters with difficult situations”, and in a Palestinian area routinely exposed…
We have conducted a Peace Yard Activity. The situation in Iraq is still unstable.
[Original by Emi NAKANO, Iraq Project Team Assistant (March 3, 2020); Translated by E. Miyazaki/A. Taguchi] Fighting continues with the remnants of the “Islamic State” (ISIS) in some areas of Iraq. Also, there have been riots between demonstrators who opposed corruption and the government. Approximately 500 people have become victims so far. Under these circumstances, we conducted a Peace Yard program with the support of INSAN, a local NGO. A total of 57 children from the age of 7 to 13 participated in the program from October 7 to December 14. Many children participated, such as locals of the Kirkuk area, evacuees from other regions, Arabs, Kurds, and other ethnic…