Learn how our Haitian partners are empowering young people to take leadership roles in ongoing earthquake recovery efforts, and how a committed group of youngsters in Wyoming doubled the impact of their spaghetti dinner fundraiser.

President and CEO of InterAction, Sam Worthington states that NGOs unfairly get the brunt of the blame for slow progress in Haiti, NGOs cannot be the only face of recovery.

InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based international NGOs, welcomes the appointment of Ertharin Cousin as the new executive director of the United Nations World Food Programme.

This report highlights three examples of Episcopal Relief & Development’s disaster response work from the past year, putting the organization’s activities in the context of different stages on the “disaster cycle.”  Episcopal Relief & Development supports local Church and ecumenical partners as they assist the most vulnerable in

Two Years After Haiti Earthquake, International Medical Corps Continues Cholera Response and Disaster Preparedness Programs, But Commitment From Donors Still Critically Needed

Samuel Worthington is quoted in this piece about Haiti's recovery on the second anniversary of the Haiti earthquake.

The crackdown in Egypt this week on civil society organizations, including several U.S. groups, is deeply troubling and must stop immediately, said InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based international NGOs.

InterAction News Release

Fact sheet on Mercy Corps' program in Haiti.

InterAction news release:

International leaders meeting in Bonn on Monday to discuss the future of Afghanistan should expand their focus from short-term stabilization efforts  to longer term development work that will have a lasting impact on the country.

InterAction News Release:

The outcome of the G20 summit in Cannes was mixed, with progress on tax havens but not enough concrete action to ease the burden of the financial crisis on the world’s poor, said InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based NGOs.

InterAction News Release: G20 leaders meeting in Cannes should heed recommendations by philanthropist Bill Gates today in his innovative funding report and invest in inclusive and sustainable growth, said the largest alliance of U.S.-based international NGOs on Thursday.

Episcopal churches are at the forefront of Hurricane Irene/Tropical Storm Lee response efforts in a number of communities.
 

Humanitarian groups are increasingly worried about the looming budget cuts in U.S. foreign assistance. They argue that lives are at stake in places like the Horn of Africa, which is suffering its worst drought in decades.

Raising public and private money for that crisis been a challenge in the current economic environment.

InterAction is an alliance of international NGOs and more than 50 of our members are responding to the crisis in the Horn of Africa, including groups such as Save the Children, World Vision and Catholic Relief Services.

InterAction and 129 NGOs placed an ad in Roll Call magazine this week.  The ad was an open letter to Congress, asking them to oppose the severe cuts to foreign aid proposed in the current budget.  

Members of Episcopal Relief & Development's Partners in Response team will travel to the flood-affected dioceses of Vermont and Albany, to visit impacted congregations and support recovery planning.

InterAction News Release:

President and CEO Sam Worthington quoted.

InterAction President and CEO Sam Worthington is quoted in this Horn of Africa story.

During the first day of InterAction's 2011 Forum, InterAction was joined by the UN's Valerie Amos and USAID's Don Steinberg at a media roundtable on the Horn of Africa.

InterAction continues to monitor the situation in the Horn of Africa and advocate for the needs of the over 12 million people who have been affected by the drought that has engulfed the region.

InterAction President and CEO Samuel A. Worthington quoted in article.

Famine has been declared in parts of Middle Shabelle, IDP settlements along the Afgooye Corridor, parts of Mogadishu hosting IDPs, Lower

With the onset of the earthquake in Haiti in last year, the use of technology in information sharing has been widely discussed within the international development and humanitarian community, and rightfully so. Three seemingly simple questions often come up. People want to know “Who is doing what? Where?

InterAction Statement: Proposed cuts included in the State Department and foreign operations appropriations bill in the House of Representatives would have devastating consequences for the world's most vulnerable populations and gut core development and humanitarian spending accounts, said InterAction, the biggest alliance of U.S.-based international NGOs on Wednesday.

InterAction condemns the alleged staging of an immunization campaign in Pakistan by the U.S. government in order to gather information for counterterrorism purposes

With famine now declared in two regions of Southern Somalia and malnutrition rates at emergency levels in arid and semi-arid regions across the Horn of Africa, nearly 720,000 children are at risk of death without urgent assistance. 

In this hard-hit country, Relief International staff are busy saving lives and sustaining livelihoods by rehabilitating primary health care facilities, training health care professionals and providing essential nutrition services to those who need it most.

Cash, food and water programs will help thousands in desperate need. Agency calls for increased support from the U.S. and the international community.

East Africa is facing the worst drought since the 1950s. The drought has withered crops, killed cattle and led to massive increases in food prices.

Sam Worthington radio interview: Millions of Somalis are mired in a deep humanitarian crisis that is now driving thousands of refugees over the border to Kenya daily.

With the danger of widespread famine in the Horn of Africa increasing daily, Lutheran World Relief is rushing $500,000 for an immediate response to this unfolding humanitarian crisis.

As more than ten million men, women and children face hunger and life-threatening health consequences from the worst drought to hit the Horn of Africa in 60 years, International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) is responding with aid to relieve victims of the worst food shortage crisis in the world today. 

International Medical Corps’ Emergency Response Team (ERT) has deployed to the Dolo Ado refugee camps in the Somali Region of Ethiopia, where the worst drought crisis in 60 years is creating a potential humanitarian crisis.  

With the crisis in Somalia today declared a famine by the FSNAU and FEWSNET, the Somalia NGO Consortium (representing 78 agencies working in Somalia) urgently calls on the international community to act now to respond to this catastrophe.

This year marks the driest period in the Eastern Horn of Africa region since 1995, with the lowest level of rainfall in more than 50 years.
 

The Christian Reformed World Relief Committee (CRWRC) is rapidly expanding its current drought response to meet a vastly increased need for food and other aid in the Horn of Africa after two failed rainy seasons in the past 12 months.

CHF International is pleased to report that rain has, at long last, fallen in the far eastern regions of Ethiopia.

Female refugees fleeing conflict and hunger in East Africa are facing another threat: rape and sexual violence.

Severe drought in East Africa has left people across the region struggling to survive. 

As the UN declares famine in two regions of Somalia, and warns of others to follow, World Vision is calling on the international community to scale up efforts to seek assurances from the various armed groups regarding safe humanitarian access so it can increase support to the South Central region where millions of children are in urgent need of food and assistance.

An estimated 10 million people in the Horn of Africa are in urgent need of assistance as drought-like conditions threaten to push populations into a devastating nutritional crisis, warns humanitarian organization ACTION AGAINST HUNGER | ACF INTERNATIONAL.

Food insecurity remains at emergency levels across parts of the Horn of Africa, famine has been declared in two regions of Southern Somalia. Humanitarian organizations are struggling to cope with the influx of Somali refugees in Ethiopia and Kenya. Malnutrition and mortality rates are alarmingly high in many parts of the region.

Today’s declaration by the United Nations of famine in Somalia makes official what aid agencies have been seeing for nearly a year – severe drought and the world’s worst food crisis has put 10 million people in desperate need of assistance and donor countries are not doing nearly enough to avert disaster, save lives and protect livelihoods.

A statement by the Somalia NGO Consortium from July 20, 2011, on the UN's declaration of the first famine of the 21st century, in two regions in southern Somalia.

InterAction News Release: Members of InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based international nongovernmental organizations working abroad, are responding to the massive humanitarian crisis occurring in the Horn of Africa. The UN is estimating that as many as 10 million people are struggling with food and water shortages, acute malnutrition and mass displacement.

InterAction watched with interest this week President Obama’s speech on troop levels in Afghanistan. With much of the attention centered on the aspects of the security transition, the face of long-term development in Afghanistan remains to be seen. In testimony before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Thursday Secretary of State Hillary Clinton noted that the U.S.

The June 2011 issue of Monday Developments Magazine

InterAction News Release: Members of Congress and U.S. NGOs announce the need to integrate global development and environmental policies with the launch of InterAction's new policy paper titled "The Nature of Development," which calls for alignment of the two issues in order to improve the effectiveness of U.S. foreign policy investments.

Members of the U.S.-based NGO alliance InterAction released the following quotes on the outcome of the G8 summit in Deauville, which ends on Friday.

FOR REPORTERS COVERING THE G8

The following quotes on the Arab Spring and Libya conflict have been released by InterAction, the biggest alliance of U.S.-based international NGOs doing relief and humanitarian work abroad:

InterAction News Release: G8 leaders meeting in Deauville this week must break a cycle of broken promises and honor billions of dollars in commitments for food, agricultural and health assistance, said the largest alliance of U.S.-based NGOs.

This week, House Appropriations Chair Hal Rogers (R-KY) announced a disappointing FY2012 subcommittee allocation for State, Foreign Operations that continues the radically downward trend in spending for international affairs begun in FY2011.

Led by the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) (http://www.gainhealth.org).and InterAction (http://www.interaction.org), 1,000 Days informs key partners about the economic consequences of and cost-effective interventions for undernutrition to make this a priority in donor and country governments’ development strategie

When representatives of the Florida Marlins and Waste Management walked into Inspiration Village in Malfety, Haiti, last week, the residents greeted them with marching bands, dancers and words of deep gratitude. Hundreds of men, women, and children gathered in front of the community center to thank the team that raised funds and awareness to build much-needed housing.

Yesterday, the compromise FY2011 full-year appropriations bill (HR 1473) passed through Congress, with a 260-117 vote in the House of Representatives and an 81-19 vote in the Senate. President Obama will sign the bill sometime today.

InterAction Statement: U.S. NGO alliance InterAction calls on Congress to pass the 2011 spending agreement today and work with the Obama administration to agree on a 2012 budget that invests in building a more stable and prosperous world.

Facts and figures to support the 2011 Sphere Handbook: Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Response.

NGO alliance InterAction welcomes World Bank President Robert Zoellick’s speech today in which he described the importance of civil society's role in development economics.

Updated information is available on InterAction member projects and education sector activities in Haiti as of March 2011.

Blog on Reuters AlertNet by InterAction president and CEO, Samuel A. Worthington, on why giving either restricted or unrestricted funds during a disaster helps. The article is in response to a Reuters blog advocating unrestricted giving only.

Japan continues to reel from the multiple disasters triggered by last Friday’s massive earthquake near its northeast coast. The media attention following this disaster has brought about a compassionate response from Americans. InterAction has developed guidelines on the most appropriate ways to help those affected by overseas disasters.

New information, as of March 17, 2011, updating the sector and program lists for InterAction members working in Haiti.

As published in the Wall Street Journal on March 17, 2011: InterAction, an umbrella group for U.S. relief agencies active abroad, advises donors to give to agencies with partner organizations in Japan that would be best placed to spend funds wisely. It says there is minimal need at this stage either for donated goods or throngs of foreign volunteers.

Cash allows relief organizations to get exactly what they need quickly without having to worry about transportation, staff time, and warehouse space. 

Our thoughts are with those in Japan and other countries across the Pacific Ocean that have been affected by the devastating earthquake and subsequent tsunami. InterAction member organizations have strong partnerships with civil society groups in Japan that are responding.

International Medical Corps is responding to the situation in Japan and tsunami-warning areas, following an 8.9-magnitude earthquake that struck Japan’s coast, triggering a tsunami that devastated northern parts of the country and put a tsunami warning in effect for much of the Pacific.

InterAction statement on crisis in Libya, March 1, 2011

Press release by InterAction member ChildFund International on its partnership with InterAction member Physicians for Peace on disability work in Haiti a year after the January 12, 2010, earthquake in Port-au-Prince.

Save the Children's assessment of Pakistan six months after the flooding.

“When I took office a year ago, the development community made clear if the United States was to play a leading role in international development, USAID would have to be strengthened and empowered with certain authorities that have been stripped from the agency over the course of decades. We heard you.”

Article from the Huffington Post one year after the January 12, 2010 earthquake in Haiti. InterAction's president and CEO, Samuel A. Worthington, was interviewed.

The campaign proposes a Ten-point checklist of Ten Essentials for Making Cities Resilient to serve as a guide for commitment by Mayors.

One year progress report from InterAction member Solar Cookers International on work done in Haiti since the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

An entry on USA Today's "Kindness" blog about projects that have been ongoing in Haiti since the January 12, 2010, earthquake, and ways that people can still help.

Article from NPR's website on a cash-for-work program in Haiti funded by InterAction member Catholic Relief Services after the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

U.S. government fact sheet on moving from humanitarian relief to reconstruction in Haiti since the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

One year progress report by InterAction member US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants (USCRI) on their activities in Haiti since the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

In response to the devastating 7.0 earth-quake that hit Haiti on January 12, 2010, USAID/OFDA selected CHF International to implement the “Community Livelihoods and Economic Assistance through Rubble Re-moval and Shelter” program.

InterAction member IRD's report on activities they've completed in Haiti in the year since the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

The $20,744,144 Food For The Poor raised for Haiti emergency earthquake relief had been spent entirely on those efforts by the end of October. The funds were used for purchasing food and other critical items that were not donated, as well as for shipping containers of relief to the country.  

Transcript of an interview of InterAction's president and CEO, Sam Worthington, and the State Department's Special Coordinator for Haiti, Thomas Adams, on the way forward in Haiti after the one year anniversary of the earthquake on January 12, 2010.

Transcript of a U.S. Department of State Special Briefing on Haitian food security from January 7, 2011.

InterAction member Oxfam's report in January 2011 on what is needed for good governance in Haiti after the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

InterAction member Handicap International's one-year report on work done in Haiti since the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

A document released by InterAction member Oxfam in January 2010, after the earthquake that devastated Haiti, with their recommendations on reconstruction.

One-year progress report by InterAction member Action Aid on their work in Haiti since the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

An op-ed in the Miami Herald by UNICEF's Anthony Lake on the progress made in Haiti so far despite the challenges since the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

An article on AlertNet about InterAction member Oxfam's criticism of the recovery effort so far from the January 12, 2010, earthquake in Haiti.

The purpose of the revision process was not to change the qualitative standards, nor to overhaul the Handbook, but to update the qualitative and quantitative indicators and guidance notes as needed, and to improve the overall structure and consistency of the text.

Handicap International would like to thank the tens of thousands of individual donors who have
responded to its emergency fundraising appeals for Haiti and who continue to support its actions in
aid of people affected by the earthquake of January 12, 2010 in Haiti.

Report from InterAction member World Concern on Haiti one year after the January 12, 2010, earthquake.

On January 12, 2010 a 7.0 earthquake rocked
the country of Haiti. The 35-second quake
killed over 230,000 people and displaced 1.5
million more. Virtually the entire country came
to a halt as schools, churches, hospitals,
government buildings, homes, and entire
neighborhoods crumbled to the ground.

Article published in the Wichita Eagle in Kansas on money donated to Haiti after the January 12, 2010, earthquake. InterAction's president and CEO, Samuel A. Worthington, was interviewed.

One year progress report from InterAction member the International Rescue Committee (IRC) after the January 12, 2010, earthquake in Haiti.

In Haiti, the leading cause of infant mortality and childhood illness is the ingestion of contaminated water. Germs for hepatitis, cholera and chronic diarrhea are often carried through water used for cooking and drinking.

Inadequate health services and a lack of access to them, combined with sub-standard sanitation systems,
place Haiti at the bottom in terms of health in the Western hemisphere. With approximately 40 doctors per
100,000 Haitians, approximately 25 percent of births are attended by a skilled professional. The situation

InterAction member EDC's one year progress report after the January 12, 2010, earthquake in Haiti.

As a part of the Haiti Aid Map initiative (http://www.haitiaidmap.org), conducted between May and December of 2010, InterAction members working in response to the January 12 Haiti earthquake were asked to provide funding information, detailing amounts raised and spent from private, U.S. government and other sources according to the following guidance.

Physicians for Peace is not a relief agency, but we felt compelled to send direct cash investments to help our long-term Haitian partners in the immediate aftermath of the January 2010 earthquake.

An article in Forbes on the dangers of using entirely foreign contractors to rebuild Haiti.

One year after Haiti earthquake, Habitat’s recovery program has benefited nearly 24,000 families through emergency, transitional and permanent housing solutions. Work continues toward serving 50,000 families over next five years.

InterAction member World Vision's one-year report on the response to the January 12, 2010, earthquake in Haiti.

This report offers international agencies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), the media, the U.S. government, and the public an overview of the humanitarian and development assistance being provided to the people of Pakistan by InterAction member agencies.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton unveiled the final report of the Quadrennial Diplomacy and Development Review (QDDR). The report provides a blueprint for elevating American "civilian power" to better advance national interests and to be a better partner to the U.S. military.

InterAction members continue to respond to the cholera outbreak in Haiti. Find more information on our crisis response page.

The U.S. State Department will set up new offices to oversee international energy affairs and scrutinize illicit financial networks as well as dramatically scale up its USAID development arm under a new plan developed by Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Haiti is now facing one of the most severe outbreaks of cholera that has been seen in the last century. This outbreak is made more complex by the humanitarian situation which resulted from the 12 January earthquake, which killed an estimated 230,000 people and injured 300,000.

The Department of State, after consultation with the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), submitted this report detailing planned uses of certain funds appropriated for Haiti in the FY 2010 Supplemental Appropriations Bill passed by Congress on July 27, 2010 and signed by President Obama on July 29, 2010 (HR 4899).

More than nine months after the devastating January 12 earthquake in Haiti that claimed an estimated 230,000 lives, the survivors are still feeling the impact of a disaster that has left many of them susceptible to increased physical insecurity and violations of their fundamental rights.

Norgrove, who worked for the humanitarian agency Development Alternatives International (DAI), was kidnapped by militants before dying in a botched American special forces rescue operation last week. DAI’s six programmes in Afghanistan are run under contract to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The recent flooding in Pakistan has been a disaster for farmers. Many families lost their crops as well as their homes, seed stores, stables and livestock.

Washington, D.C. (October 6, 2010) — InterAction, the largest alliance of U.S.-based international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), has chosen Joel R.

InterAction President and CEO Samuel A. Worthington, in representative of the alliance of U.S. NGOs applauds the President Obama’s new global development policy.InterAction looks forward to co-work with the Administration to turn the policy framework into results.

The August 2010 issue of Monday Developments Magazine

Pakistan is seeing the worst flooding the country has experienced in 80 years, yet it appears the world has yet to turn its full attention to the need there.

The worst flood to hit Pakistan in 80 years has left at least three million people in need of emergency assistance.

This report chronicles the activities of seven InterAction member agencies in Sri Lanka. This member activity report describes the relief and development efforts of InterAction member agencies in Sri Lanka from December 2006 through June 2010.

InterAction President and CEO Samuel A. Worthington testifies before the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs' Subcommittee on Western Hemisphere on Thursday, July 29, 2010.

Plan has worked in Haiti since 1973 and, with 143 staff already on the ground, was able to respond quickly when the devastating earthquake struck.

4:53pm: A 7.0 earthquake hits Haiti. 17 minutes later International Medical Corps is preparing our Emergency Response Team. Within 5 hours, medical volunteers are deploying. 22 hours after the earthquake, we are saving lives on the ground in Port-au-Prince, working side-by-side with our Haitian medical counterparts.

Since January 12, WHI has launched an emergency response program that mobilizes its extraordinary capacity in the most severely affected areas focusing on health, psychosocial care, sensitization, potable water, sanitation, food, income-generating activities and workforce employment.

On January 12, 2010, a devastating earthquake—the worst natural disaster to hit the Western Hemisphere in two centuries—struck Haiti, killing approximately 300,000 people and leaving as many as one million homeless.

Full resolution quicktime movie (766mb)

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Six months after Haiti’s devastating 7.0 earthquake, Lutheran World Relief (LWR) remains hard at work assisting those who are still dealing with its aftermath and will be for years to come. LWR, with a 14-year history in Haiti, is focusing the majority of its efforts on underserved rural populations.

Since the earthquake, BWAid has been helping in Haiti through a network of agencies. Immediately following the earthquake the two Haitian member bodies of the Baptist World Alliance (BWA) were contacted and assistance offered. This close link with the two bodies remains as we work together.

From the immediate hours after the quake and ongoing, in all, CWS efforts - including the distribution of hygiene, school and baby kits, tents, wheelchairs, medical kits and other supplies -- have directly assisted at least 41,750 individuals so far; CWS is also working as a member of the global ACT Alliance, which has provided assistance to 341,000 Haitians.
 

During the half-year since an earthquake unleashed massive destruction in Haiti, the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) has been devoted to both providing immediate assistance to survivors and laying the groundwork for a large-scale, long-term recovery effort.  Haiti is not out of the woods yet, not by a long shot.

Since January 12, 2010, Medical Teams International has:

On the six-month anniversary of Haiti's deadly earthquake, President Barack Obama said a rapid international response saved lives but the recovery effort must continue.

Long before the crippling earthquake of January 12, 2010, Jesuit Refugee
Service had a grassroots presence in Haiti, providing humanitarian assistance
to displaced Haitians both in the town of Ouanaminthe on the northeastern
border with the Dominican Republic, and in the Dominican Republic itself. JRS

Tents fill every open space in Port-au-Prince: public parks, empty lots, even traffic
medians. For thousands of earthquake survivors, these crowded camps are the only
housing option.

Just six months after the earthquake, Habitat is:

FACTS AT A GLANCE:
The global Red Cross network is providing:

Six months after the devastating earthquake in Haiti, there is still much to be done, however, the communities Plant With Purpose works with have made significant progress by planting trees, constructing soil conservation barriers, and providing incomes to support their families through our “Cash for Work” program.

On January 12, 2010, a massive earthquake struck Haiti causing the largest urban disaster in a developing country in decades. The American people responded with a generous outpouring of donations and a desire to help the Haitian people.

The humanitarian community has achieved a great deal in responding to the earthquake that struck Haiti six months ago. This report outlines the accomplishments of the humanitarian organizations represented in the IASC, and the valuable lessons learned through their efforts.

The impacts of the global economic crisis are not happening within a vacuum. As the developing world struggles to protect any economic progress that has been made, it also continues to cope with health, hunger, and climate change issues.

Letter from InterAction's President & CEO Samuel A.

This is a PowerPoint presentation of UNISDR's 2010-2011 World Disaster Reduction Campaign.

Save the Children calls on governments to provide stalwart support to meet Haiti’s immediate and long-term development needs, in cooperation with the Haitian government and a wide variety of partners, including local civil society and children themselves.

Letter from InterAction's President & CEO Samuel A. Worthington to the chairs and ranking members of the House and Senate State, Foreign Operations Appropriations Subcommittees on InterAction's recommendations for the anticipated FY2010 supplemental funding measure.

The January/February 2010 issue of Monday Developments Magazine.

The Columbus Dispatch (OH)
 
Smaller charities sometimes ill-prepared for relief work
Wednesday,  March 10, 2010 2:49 AM
By Elizabeth Gibson
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Letter from InterAction's President and CEO Samuel A. Worthington to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah regarding the USAID Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance's announcement that it would reduce funding across all regions to make room for its massive response in Haiti

An InterAction Viewpoint on President Obama's announced strategy for Afghanistan.

A progress report on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

A progress report on Preventing Sexual Violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo since publication of InterAction’s 2008 Foreign Assistance Briefing Book.

Report of InterAction member organizations' activities in Afghanistan for 2009.

Report on public dialogue hosted by InterAction and the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) on country-led development and partnerships in fighting global poverty

During an audio press conference today, members of the InterAction alliance called on G-20 leaders to rapidly implement their previous pledge of $50 billion for the world’s poorest countries at next week’s Pittsburgh Summit.

 Reaction from InterAction to the 2009 G20 Final Communique