Many of you have been following news of the earthquake in eastern Afghanistan. The recent natural disaster that occurred in Shirzad District in Nangarhar province brought human and material losses to its inhabitants. Scores of lives were lost and more than fifty persons, men, women and children, were severely injured. The people of this district are very poor with limited employment opportunities available. The damages to the property and loss of lives are of such magnitude that it will take a long time for the dwellers of the disaster hit area would be able to recover. The quake that has caused this crisis left approximately 9,523 homeless.

Here in Kabul we have been experiencing an intimate view. Many of the people we work with at WADAN have been affected directly by this disaster. WADAN, (The Welfare Association for the Development of Afghanistan), an Afghan NGO working at the grassroots level in education, civic education and drug control, has provided an umbrella of support for Rubia in Afghanistan including office, housing, transport and mentoring. See www.wadan.org for more.

This is a chance for us to help WADAN.

The initial quake was on April 17; aftershocks and tremors have damaged villages and destroyed scores of homes.   Hundreds of families now live under the sky; children are the most vulnerable. More than 2200 children have lost access to basic services and education.  To avert further human crisis and properly attend to the needs of the children, there is the immediate need to provide emergency humanitarian aid to re-establish education, housing, and health services.

WADAN staff members are from the villages of Khogiani in Shirzad District, the epicenter of the earthquake. They are the men who guard us, make our tea, and drive us safely around town.  They are kind. Most of their families have been displaced- their homes have been destroyed or are too unstable to live in.  The elderly, women and children are all sleeping outside in UN tents in the cold and rain. One of the Kabul staff shared his distress with us over morning tea; he is a young man responsible for providing for his family of 16 and now they don’t even have a roof over their heads. Another staffer lost 6 members of his family.  The full extent of the destruction and loss of life has not been tallied. Aid agencies, including the government’s disaster management unit have started relief operations in the affected areas.  It will take time for relief to get to all the victims, for all the houses to be rebuilt, for schools to start up again. Time is something they do not have; conditions are worsening by the day.

I am asking you to please make a donation to Rubia’s specially designated earthquake relief fund.  Rubia is working with several other organizations to raise $20,000 by the end of May.  On May 1st we received word that the Goodrich Foundation, a member of our New England- Afghanistan network, donated $5000 to WADAN for earthquake relief.
www.goodrichfoundation.org

We will continue to collect donations through June. Pass this information and link along to your friends and colleagues.  If everyone we ask gives just $25 we will reach our goal in a month.  If you are in Afghanistan and wish to donate, please contact Rachel Lehr, who will be at WADAN till the end of May. 0788 705 404.

Rachel Lehr

Executive Director

Rubia, Inc.