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Haiti: A Six-Month Update July, 2010
http://www.youtube.com/v/pzfSR7lsfFI&hl=en&fs=1,height=344,width=410
Thanks to the generous donations from WSPA supporters, our disaster management team – as part of the Animal Relief Coalition for Haiti (ARCH) – has made great strides in providing disaster relief to the animals and people of Haiti during the past six months.
To date, we have treated more than 25,000 sick or injured animals following the country’s devastating earthquake.
Immediately following the disaster, our team worked closely with Haitian government officials, international agencies (such as the United Nations) and other NGOs to define the country’s most pressing animal-related problems, carry out treatments and develop a long-term plan for Haiti to better protect against future disasters.
Now, because of your charitable support and a $1.1 million-dollar agreement with the Haitian government, we’ve been able to accomplish the following since January:
Provided Care to Sick and Injured Animals
- Using a Mobile Veterinary Clinic, provided aid and vaccinations to more than 25,000 dogs, cats, goats, cattle, horses and other animals.
- Trained a local veterinary team of 10 people to treat and care for animals.
- Created new datasheets and protocols for more detailed data collection.
Educated Local Professionals and the General Public - Developed a public awareness campaign to educate Haitians about disaster preparedness, pet care and health issues related to their pets and families.
- Launched Haiti’s first-ever Dog & Cat Survey, which will help establish a baseline for evaluating the country’s pet population, incidence of rabies, lab equipment need, etc.
Established Strong Government Relations
- Developed good, productive working relationships with several Haitian groups, including the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Education and UN.
- Became the only group with a memorandum of understanding (MOU) from the Haitian government, making us the leading entity outside the Ministry of Agriculture during this emergency.
Purchased New Lab Materials and Equipment - Began repairing the wall around the National Veterinary Laboratory and main lab infrastructure, which fell during the earthquake.
- Purchased (and are about to install) 24 solar-powered refrigeration units for storing vaccinations.
Thank you for your help in making these achievements possible – there is still a lot of work to be done, but we’re getting closer to improved animal welfare conditions and veterinary capacity in Haiti.
For more information on WSPA’s disaster work, please visit WSPA’s Animals in Disaster blog.
Images © WSPA/IFAW
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