Carol Han's blog

Did you know that a woman or girl who has been raped has just 72 hours to access medical care in order to prevent HIV infection? The hours and days following rape are critical for women and men, and boys and girls, to treat injuries related to the assault, prevent infection and receive the basic emotional support that will allow them to recover and resume a full life.

Typhoon Bopha made landfall in the Philippines on December 4, 2012, affecting more than 5 million people and wreaking a path of destruction across 30 provinces. USAID responded swiftly by providing more than $4.5 million in assistance to help meet the most critical needs of those affected by the storm.

Disasters impact the lives of hundreds of millions of people around the world every year. Half of those affected are children, who often bear the biggest brunt of humanitarian crises. Nowhere have we seen this more clearly than in the wake of the January 2010 Haiti earthquake. As a result of the disaster, hundreds of thousands of children lost a parent, caregiver or other family members. They lost access to essential services and resources including food, water, shelter, education and health care.