Building local skills
When people’s lives are turned upside down by a major disaster or the effects of conflict, it’s often local aid workers who are called on to respond first.
It is regularly the people of the affected country who work to find shelter, food and medical attention for those in need. At RedR we know that building the skills of local aid workers means disaster-affected communities are better supported in emergencies and better prepared for future crises.
Watch our film about building the skills of local aid workers around the world.
Pakistan
Pakistan was hit by unprecedented flooding in 2010 and again in 2011; a devastating earthquake in 2005, as well as ongoing conflict.
Our training programme in Islamabad continues to help aid workers, humanitarian organisations and government agencies improve the long-term effectiveness of aid delivery to communities across the country.
And we support these same humanitarian actors to better prepare for and mitigate the impact of future disasters. RedR trained almost 900 aid workers in 2010-11 – the majority of them Pakistani nationals. Read about how RedR-trained aid workers are improving the lives of women in Jalozai camp in north west Pakistan.
Croplands ruined by flooding in Sindh Province, Pakistan, prevent farm labourers from earning an income @ RedR/Usman Ghani
Sudan
Poor health, malnutrition, looting and insecurity are commonplace for the millions of displaced people in Darfur’s camps. Aid workers in Sudan face some of the most dangerous conditions in which to operate in the world. Sometimes, security threats stop aid delivery altogether.
We are the premier provider of staff welfare and security training for aid workers in Sudan, delivering courses to agencies like Goal, the World Food Programme and Sudanese Ministry of Health.
Each year we train thousands of humanitarians across Sudan – the majority of them Sudanese nationals – laying the foundations for improved humanitarian response in the years to come.
Read about the importance of security to the effective delivery of aid in Sudan.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka has had to cope with devastating natural disasters and conflict in recent years. Since 2005 our work has been two-fold; helping international aid agency staff to better respond to the widespread destruction caused by the tsunami and building the skills of local relief workers to ensure better preparation for future disasters.
As international humanitarian agencies have left the country over recent, grassroots level organisations and government institutions have become increasingly important in the delivery of humanitarian programmes. During our programme in Sri Lanka our team focused on developing the capacity of these groups.
This work was so successful that in 2010 an independent RedR Lanka was established, which continues to support humanitarian training and capacity building needs within the country.
