AMERICA/ECUADOR - Six months after the earthquake many children still need help to overcome fear

Wednesday, 19 October 2016 natural catastrophe  

Internet

Portoviejo (Agenzia Fides) - To meet the needs of children who are still living in informal shelters and rural areas six months after the earthquake that devastated the Country, continues to be a major challenge. According to the United Nations Fund for Children, more than 8,800 people live in temporary shelter, with no hygiene and adequate sanitary conditions. In addition, local services that deal with special protection must be strengthened, and many children still need help to overcome the fear that prevents them from attending school after the earthquake. The government has reduced the number of people living in official shelters from 33,000 to 7000, mainly thanks to concessions and family homes. With the support of thousands of donors from around the world, UNICEF has been able to provide micronutrients and vitamin A to 250,000 children and 26,800 pregnant women. In addition, 30,000 zinc treatments were administered to treat cases of acute diarrhea, 40,000 people were provided with drinking water, educational material on the prevention of diseases such as zika were introduced in the programming of schools in areas affected by the virus.
The UN agency has distributed educational materials to over 34,000 children and offered temporal shelter to more than 13,000. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 19/10/2016)


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