WINTER 2012 The Magazine of Plan in ausTralia Global ChIld 1

Global ChildTHE MAGAZINE OF PLAN IN AUSTRALIA | WINTER 2012

Journey to burkina FasoPlan supporter visits eighth sponsor child

Testimony to successA former sponsored child says thank you

Manu Feildel in West africaCelebrity chef meets some of the 18 million people affected by food crisis

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ContentsCommunity News 4 Events and updates

Plan in action 8 Testimony to Success: a

former sponsored child says thank-you

10 Toy Story: The right toys in a child's early education12 From Melbourne to Bangkok: a Plan intern’s story

14 Meet our Supporter Service team

The Voice of Youth16 Voice of the Future: Plan's new Youth Project Team

Supporters in Focus18 A sponsor's Journey to Burkina Faso

Global learning20 West Africa Food Crisis: The facts

founded 75 years ago, Plan is one of the oldest and largest children's development organisations in the world with no political or religious agendas. We work at the grassroots to empower communities to overcome poverty so that children have the opportunity to reach their full potential. We encourage children to be actively involved in improving their communities. We unite, empower and inspire people around the globe to champion every child’s right to survive, develop to the fullest, be protected from harmful influences, abuse and exploitation and participate fully in family, cultural and social life. Together with our supporters we can transform the world for children.

The Plan story

Transform the world for children.Front Cover: Celebrity Chef Manu feildel meets a student at a Plan-supported school in Doso, niger. Manu visited niger to help raise awareness of the food crisis currently facing 18 million people across the sahel region of West africa. Photographer: igor sapina

This Page: a nigerien boy waters vegetables in a Plan-supported community garden that is helping locals to cope with the food crisis now affecting 18 million people across West africa.

This publication has been printed by an ISO 14001 environmental management system (EMS) and ISO 9001 quality management system (QMS) certified printer using vegetable based inks and a 100% alcohol free printing process. It is manufactured using an independently audited carbon neutral process. The paper is ecoStar, a FSC® Recycled certified paper made carbon neutral (CN), manufactured from 100% post consumer recycled paper in a process chlorine free environment and under an iso 14001 eMs. This publication is fully recyclable, please dispose of wisely.

Global Child Winter 2012, Vol.33. global Child is the magazine of Plan international australia and is published biannually. editorial enquiries: editor@plan.org.au

Plan International Australia

address: 18/60 City road, southbank ViC 3006. Phone: 13 7526 fax: 03 9670 1130 email: info@plan.org.au Web: www.plan.org.au

To support Plan visit www.plan.org.au. Donations to Plan of $2 or more are tax deductible.

The opinions expressed are not necessarily those of Plan. © 2012.all material in global Child is under copyright; however, some articles and photographs may be reproduced with permission from Plan. Plan is a signatory to the aCfiD Code of Conduct and is a trusted recipient of funding from ausaiD – the australian government agency for international Development. Plan international australia is governed by a Board of Directors comprising: anne skipper aM (Chair), Philip endersbee (Deputy Chair), Tim Beresford, Claire hatton, Jeremy ingall, Michael Corry, neil Thompson, Philippa Quinn, Julie hamblin and Brian Babington.

By Ian Wishart Chief executive, Plan international australia

Keeping our promisein May, i was deeply disappointed when the australian government broke an important promise to the world’s poor.

Previously, both sides of politics had repeatedly committed to the australian aid budget rising to 50 cents in every $100 of australia's national income by 2015.

But the focus on achieving a Budget surplus means the gillard government chose to balance its books on the backs of the world’s poorest and put off the aid increase until 2016. There was little objection from the Coalition.

Where does this leave our contribution to the international goal to halve poverty by 2015, agreed by more than 180 nations?

Where does it leave the millions of children living in extreme poverty today across the globe?

Where does it leave our reputation as a nation that is committed to helping the poorest people in our region and beyond?

Just last year, the Prime Minister restated her commitment to doubling australia's aid by 2015 in a leaflet that announced ‘australia: We Do What We say’.

government contributions to aid, whether by labor or the Coalition, have far too often proven to be ‘discretionary’.

This is why we rely on your continued support.

To assist children to overcome poverty we need a stable, independent and reliable income. income that is not dependent on the vagaries of politics but that allows us to invest long-term in the needs of children and their communities.

sponsoring a child is one of the most powerful ways you can do this. at Plan, sponsorship funds are directed towards projects that benefit a child’s community.

We consult everyone in the community, particularly the children, and they help us to design and run projects that make a real difference to the things that matter to them. Working together, we help communities to do their best to ensure their children can reach their full potential.

furthermore, when we talk to governments about overseas aid it is the generosity of australians such as you that proves there is widespread public support for australian aid and tackling poverty and gives us the clout with politicians.

so, thank you for your generous support of Plan’s work.

for clear evidence of the impact of child sponsorship, read lydia’s story (page 8). This former sponsored child has gone on to graduate from university and support her younger siblings.

Your regular giving through child sponsorship for as little as $43 a month allows us to keep our promise of a better world for all children.

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Community News

"We were waiting for the Prime Minister to show the world that when we make a promise, we keep it. Poor people know they are powerless. The last thing they need is broken promises."

INTRodUCING SaMa

Plan Ceo ian Wishart responds to the federal government abandoning its commitment to lift foreign aid to 50 cents in every $100 of australia's national income by 2015.

intrepid Travel is a global travel company with roots in several developing countries, and has been a long-time supporter of Plan’s work. But they wanted to do more, so they decided to join Plan in the fight for gender equality.

The result – saMa, which means ‘equal’ in Bahasa (indonesian) – is a global gender equality campaign raising funds to support Plan projects that help bridge the gender gap through early education. Through this, it can improve the lives of children and their communities.

This year, donations from saMa will support an early education project in

laos. as of June 2012, over $20,000 dollars had already been raised to support the project with considerable global fundraising efforts by intrepid set to continue for the duration of the campaign.

educating children early helps to give them the best start in life and is one of the most effective ways to counteract barriers that keep many children, particularly girls, from developing to their full potential.

The saMa campaign continues the strong relationship Plan and intrepid Travel have shared for ten years.

in 2011 a group of passionate intrepid Travel employees got together to form a working group, with the aim of finding new ways for their company to help bring about positive change in the places they visit.

‘stop the hunger’ is Plan’s new appeal to raise urgent funds for more than 18 million people – almost half of whom are children – currently at risk from hunger in West africa.

Celebrity chef Manu feildel joined us on a recent trip to niger to see for himself what is happening and how australians can help. Manu knows food, and he also has a strong bond with West africa, growing up in a community in france that was primarily made up of West africans.

“When Plan called me in May to talk about the food crisis in West Africa, my first response was to ask if I could visit and help to raise awareness of the issue,” said Manu.

While in niger, Manu saw Plan’s work in action, visiting emergency food distribution centres, school feeding programs

and health centres that are treating malnourished children, along with Plan-run refugee camps for people fleeing conflict in Mali.

at one of the schools, Manu helped to cook a meal for 275 children. “i’ve been cooking for 24 years. i think this is the most rewarding time in the kitchen ever,” Manu said. “i’ve cooked for

hundreds of people at a time before. But cooking for 275 kids who need nutrition, this is the best that i could hope for.”

With your support Plan can address the escalating food crisis in West africa. for as little as $19 you can help provide emergency food supplies and other essential services to malnourished children and their families at risk of starvation.

and your donation won't stop there. With reports that up to half a million children are at risk of dropping out of school, your donation will help Plan run school feeding programs in niger. Your support will ensure families and thousands of children maintain their education during this crisis – one of the surest ways to empower communities to break the cycle of poverty.

You can help Manu and Plan support children and their families affected by the West Africa food crisis by making a one-off donation to our Stop the Hunger appeal. Visit plan.org.au or call 13 75 26.

Find out more about the West Africa Food Crisis on page 20

Manu Feildel joins Plan to help Stop the hunger

Climate Extremeis climate change causing more disasters? Why are some people affected by disasters more than others? and what can we do to reduce the impact of disasters?

Climate extreme: how young people can respond to disasters in a changing world is a youth-friendly summary of a special report, Managing the risks of extreme

hot off the press!»

1

events and Disasters to advance Climate Change adaptation (sreX), from the intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. it describes how young people around the world are contributing and asks what else can be done to adapt to the risk of climate change-related disasters.

Download a free copy at plan.org.au

For more information or to make a donation to SAMA, visit intrepidtravel.com/sama or facebook.com/intrepidsama

girls in class at a Plan-supported primary school in Pha oudom, north-west laos.

Manu Feildel helps cook a meal for 275 children who attend a Plan-supported school in Dosso, Niger.

a powerful 8.6 magnitude earthquake and strong aftershocks struck off indonesia. it sent people as far away as southern india scurrying from buildings and raised fears of a disastrous tsunami as in 2004.

actor geoffrey rush was honoured as australian of the Year, 2012, for his outstanding achievements and lifetime devotion to the arts.

on 25 May in houla, syria, 108 people – including 49 children – were brutally killed marking a new low in the syrian uprising.

opposition leader aung san suu Kyi was sworn in to Burma's military-backed parliament, taking public office for the first time since launching her struggle against authoritarian rule nearly a quarter of a century ago.

in March, birth registration for every child made it to the top of the un agenda after successful advocacy efforts led by Plan.

international judges found former liberian leader Charles Taylor guilty of aiding and abetting war crimes during the sierra leone civil war.

following the death of his father, the new president of north Korea Kim Jong un addressed his nation and the world for the first time on Sunday 15 april.

facebook was listed on the nasDaQ stock exchange on 18 May with worldwide publicity making its owners multiple billionaires.

The diamond Jubilee celebration of the 60th anniversary of Queen elizabeth’s reign as Queen of the Commonwealth and great Britain took place in early June. it received worldwide publicity and brought the uK to a standstill.

around the worlda quick round-up of stories that have caught our attention since the last edition of global Child.

»

»

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“I’ve been cooking for 24 years. I think this is the most rewarding time in the kitchen ever”Manu feildel

This cycling trip from saigon to siem reap is a fundraising venture with a difference. over 11 days you will travel deep into Vietnam’s Mekong Delta region, through the rice paddies and sugar palms of southern Cambodia to siem reap, home to the temples of angkor. You will also join local festivities for international Women’s Day on 8 March – truly celebrating your support for global gender equality.

While in Vietnam you will have the opportunity to see firsthand Plan’s

grassroots work to help girls reach their full potential.

interested?

get your mum, sister, aunty and friends involved and discover Vietnam and Cambodia on two wheels.

Find out more when you visit inspiredadventures.com.au/cycleforgirls

Cycle for Girls, because You Can

because I am a Community News

The i am a girl documentary follows the stories of seven girls from around the world, including gimse, left, from Cambodia and Manu from Papua new guinea.

Join fundraisers cycling through stunning rural landscapes in Cambodia and Vietnam’s Mekong Delta.

Shhhh ...Last year the UN announced that 11 October would officially be known as International Day of the Girl Child.

This is something Plan has campaigned for as part of our ‘Because i am a girl’ campaign to highlight the unique challenges and issues facing girls in many developing countries. We want to celebrate the naming of october 11 and so we’re planning a big event, but shhh, it’s a secret!

To find out more, stay tuned to facebook.com/planaustralia or sign up to our e-newsletter at plan.org.au.

There is a group of people in the world today who are more persecuted than anyone else, but they are not political or religious activists. They are girls.

Plan is a very proud supporter of i am a girl, a new feature length documentary that is set to air later this year.

We meet seven girls on the brink of womanhood, each from a different country and culture but all dealing with the stark realities of what it means to grow up female today.

Being born a girl means you are more likely to be subjected to violence, disease, poverty and disadvantage than any other group on the planet. as each girl moves closer to coming of age, i am a girl shows what it really means to grow up female in the 21st century, travelling across cultures and societies in africa, asia and australia, to realise the diversity of each girls’ experiences.

i am a girl presents firsthand insights from the girls – not only about their lives now but what they see for the future. in their stories are the shared thread of hopes and dreams of countless girls around the world.

To find out more and to view the trailer visitiamagirl.com.au

I am a Girl:Seven girls, seven stories, seven voices for change

Join the conversation »The best way to raise awareness is to make some noise – so we need your voice. one of the best places to do this is online. Join us on our social media channels and our website. start conversations with your friends and share our stories, photos, videos and more.

» becauseiamagirl.com.au

» facebook.com/becauseiamagirl.au

» twitter: @invest_in_girls

Make a one-off donation to GirlsFund which supports a range of programs that improve the lives of girls and address the unique obstacles they face.

Become a Girls Champion, which provides ongoing, regular contributions to GirlsFund. As a Girls Champion, your regular contributions will allow Plan the flexibility to commit to long-term projects that help girls – and their families – overcome poverty.

If you would like to support Plan’s work to help girls, you can make a donation to our ‘Because I am a Girl’ campaign in two ways:

donate

1.2.

Plan’s ‘because I am a Girl’ campaign is on again, and this year it shines a spotlight on child marriage and a girl’s right to education. From July through to the end of November we will be launching a series of exciting and informative events, online activities and conversations – all aimed at helping girls to realise their right to a brighter future.

So how can you get involved?

Fundraise by joining in ‘Cycle for Girls, because I Can!’ in 2013.

Girl »

OCT11

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of Plan’s success

an open letter from former sponsored child Lydia Muyambo shows just how much impact sponsorship can have.

‘ ‘true testimony

I am a

in Zimbabwe

growing up in a small village in Mutare, zimbabwe, i never dreamt that one day i would attain a degree from a university and work for international organisations but thanks to Plan, i managed to break all the barriers usually encountered by a girl child in a rural community and achieve my dream.

Plan helped me to build a solid foundation for a successful and enjoyable life. Being a sponsored child was exciting and it made a difference in my life. i would look forward to greetings and Christmas cards and photos of my sponsor family, which all made me a hero in my village.

receiving a letter was an honour and i couldn’t wait to reply and then look forward to another one. as a sponsored child, i used to like being photographed by Plan staff members, especially in our school compound. i would call my friend to join me in the picture and sometimes i would be photographed together with my mother; oh, it was so amazing.

The best part of my relationship with Plan was when they took over the payment of my school fees. Before i was enrolled in

school, learning was difficult as we would be constantly sent home to collect school fees even though we knew they weren’t there.

Plan helped me enjoy school and i worked hard and even set myself goals that i have so far managed to achieve. i managed to pass my ordinary and advanced level exams and went on to study a Bachelor of arts degree at the university of zimbabwe; I made history as I was the first in my family to graduate from a university.

humanitarian work was always close to my heart and giving back to the community always my passion. having known and experienced poverty, i yearned to make a difference in the lives of others.

i now have a job working with international aid organisations that has given me a platform to help others, a wish i always had since I benefited from Plan’s programs.

since i began working i have taken over the payment of school fees for my siblings, who are all doing well, in an effort to surpass my achievement. and last year i got married to a wonderful and caring husband and had one of the best weddings in Mutare; i wish you were all there.

Plan proved that with timely support, girls and women can make a difference in their communities and poverty can be reduced. i am an example of such empowerment.

i say thank you very much to my sponsor from australia, who made a difference in my life.

To find out more about sponsoring a child, refer to the insert included in this edition of Global Child or visit plan.org.au

"Plan helped me to build a solid foundation for a successful and enjoyable life."

Rekha Shrestha from Plan’s Melbourne office met Lydia on a recent trip to africa to celebrate Plan zimbabwe’s 25th anniversary.

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Support from an Australian sponsor helped Lydia Muyambo to complete her education. Now she is helping others through her work with an international aid agency.

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Toy story The right toys play an important role in a child’s early education and development. We asked Plan’s early learning Materials specialist Amandine Baillet to explain why.

You recently spent six months in Indonesia helping implement a Plan-supported child development project – can you tell us a bit about it?

This project aims to ensure that indonesian children are raised in nurturing and stimulating environments, and that they are healthy and prepared for school. To help communities achieve this, Plan focuses on increasing the awareness that parents and teachers have about the importance of child development, supporting quality early learning centres and supporting children to have a smooth transition to primary school. a big focus of this is making sure children have access to age-appropriate toys to help them develop.

for this project to be successful it needs to be culturally sensitive, flexible and responsive to the needs of vulnerable

How does Plan ensure children have access to sustainable toys?

While i was in indonesia my role was to help project staff develop practical skills, such as making toys from low-cost, locally available and recycled materials. i also showed staff how to use tools for monitoring and stimulating child development for children aged 0–6 and supported skills development for parenting group facilitators.

I developed a practical workshop for field staff and caregivers that focused on introducing literacy, maths and corner play activities that support all areas of child development. The aim of the workshop was also to educate them on the importance of using toys that are made locally and are appropriate for the child's age. as part of the workshop i presented everyone with examples of toys that i had made from recycled and raw materials found in the local area – keeping the emphasis on the importance of producing low-cost, locally sourced learning materials. it was great to see how interested the staff and caregivers were.

children and communities, appropriate for rural settings, and able to be managed by the community members themselves so it is sustainable in the long-term.

Why are toys so important for the children in these communities?

When children play with toys they learn and develop various skills that will support them to succeed in school and in life.

Playing with toys helps children develop a sense of self, responsibility for themselves and others, social behaviour, gross and fine motor skills, observation and problem-solving skills, logical thinking and math skills, listening, speaking, reading and writing skills. They also learn how to communicate thoughts, ideas and feelings and they learn to socialise, negotiate, co-operate and resolve conflicts with others.

Was your workshop successful? How has early learning improved?

in the six months since i returned to australia, the Plan indonesia team has continued the work. Plan-supported early learning centres now contain a range of learning materials that have been made by caregivers and parents with the support of Plan staff; for example, puzzles, blocks, maths bags and board games.

i feel proud that i have helped to make a difference for children in Plan’s early Childhood Care and Development project in indonesia. This work demonstrated that quality toys can be made from local, low-cost and recycled materials and that children have improved development outcomes when they are supported to learn through play.

If you would like to find out more or make a donation to this project visit plan.org.au or call 13 75 26.

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Parents and caregivers take part in a toy making workshop.

Amandine meets with Ketin, a child who is benefiting from the child development project, and her mother.

Children at a Plan-supported early learning centre in Indonesia play with board games made from local and low-cost materials.

Children play with the contents of their maths bags. The bags are made by parents and caregivers after attending training workshops and help children to develop basic maths skills.

arriving on the 18th floor of one of the city’s major office buildings, my working week is about to begin.

Plan’s Australian office is in Melbourne, but the sights of my home city are not what i see when i look out my window today.

Instead, I can see motorbike taxis jostling for space at the traffic lights, food vendors and clothing stalls arranged side-by-side on the footpath, and pedestrians weaving cautiously across the congested road. i’m in Bangkok, where i’m completing a three-month placement at Plan’s Asia Regional Office.

in september last year, i began a 12-month internship with Plan in Australia’s communications team. I was close to finishing my journalism degree, and brought with me experience from volunteer work at another international development organisation and a gap year in africa in 2009. i enjoyed writing and telling stories, but i also had a growing passion for international development.

i saw the internship with Plan as the perfect opportunity to combine these two interests. rather than entering traditional journalism, i wanted to tell the stories that i thought deserved to be heard.

Through interning with the communications team, i’ve been able to apply the skills i learnt at university. i’ve worked on publications, including a child rights guide for teachers, and helped develop an online library for all of Plan in australia’s images and stories.

Dealing with such rich content on a daily basis has meant i’ve also learnt about how development applies in practice. i was pleasantly surprised to learn that most of Plan’s staff in the field are locals who live in the communities where they work. This means they understand the culture of the community and can ensure the local people’s needs are being addressed.

i’ve also developed great relationships. as the only intern not working within the Programs department, it was initially

daunting knowing that i didn’t have the international development background of the other five. Concepts such as child rights were fairly new to me, but working with the other interns allowed me to learn from their experiences, and in turn give them an insight into the role communications plays at an organisation such as Plan.

and now i’m in Bangkok! i’ve been here since late april, where i’m working with Plan’s regional communications team. even though I was dealing with stories from the field every day in Melbourne, it was easy to feel removed from where they’d come from. Working at the Asia Regional Office, I certainly feel ‘closer to the action’.

We recently had our annual regional communications network meeting, where staff from across asia came to Bangkok for four days to plan and discuss the region’s communication work. it was a great opportunity to meet everyone and learn about the work they do in their countries on a day-to-day basis.

While in Bangkok, one of my main tasks involves working on a storytelling training project.

This project aims to improve the quality of stories produced by Plan about the work that we do. Working directly with Plan’s storytellers in Vietnam, indonesia and Cambodia has provided me with an invaluable insight into how story production works in the field.

september is just around the corner, and it’s hard to believe i’ve been with Plan for nearly a year. The knowledge i’ve gained through this internship program has been priceless – it has allowed me to progress both professionally and personally beyond what i could have ever imagined.

Plan’s Graduate Intern Program will be running again later this year. If you’re interested in applying for an intern position, visit plan.org.au or keep a lookout for information on the Plan Australia facebook page.

"i’m in Bangkok, where i’m completing a three-month placement at Plan’s asia Regional Office."

images of Christie coming..

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a Plan intern’s story

MelbourneFrom

bangkok:to

By Christie Long

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Christie Long, front right, with members of Plan’s internship program.

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Sophie, 18 years at PlanWhat has kept you working at Plan for such a long time? The wonderful people i work with and the fact that i am helping to make a difference by being here.

What do you love about speaking to supporters? i love speaking to supporters who make my job worthwhile, who are happy to help children in the communities we work in and who want to make a life-lasting change for a better world.

lambrina, 10 months at PlanWhat do you love about working at Plan? i enjoy working in an environment where everyone is focused on children and on promoting their rights. i also just love my team – they are wonderful, hard-working people.

What’s the most interesting thing you’ve been told on the phone? i always seem to get compliments about my name. it’s always a good conversation-starter.

Michelle, 5 years at PlanWhat has kept you working at Plan for such a long time? The people in the supporter service team are the nicest people i have ever worked with – there is a real team spirit, and managers are supportive. i get a good feeling knowing that i am doing my bit to help children around the world reach their full potential.

Zana, 14 months at PlanWhat do you love about working at Plan? i am never bored and i work with the greatest bunch of people.

Is there something else you would like to share? Working for an organisation such as Plan is very rewarding because i encounter amazing, inspirational people through our supporters and the people we work with all the time. it’s great that all our hard work is really making a difference to the lives of many children around the world. it is so awesome to be an active part of that.

Marleen, more than 20 years at PlanWhat has kept you working at Plan for such a long time? i have enjoyed my stay with Plan and i have seen many changes over the years. i have come across a group of very dedicated and passionate people.

Do you have an experience that you would like to share? The highlight of being part of Plan was my trip to egypt for a seminar and a talk on child protection practices in the Australian office. It was a wonderful experience that I will never forget. The Plan staff were wonderful. They are all a team dedicated to Plan and they welcomed us very warmly.

blake, 1 year at PlanWhat do you love about working for Plan? i love working for an organisation that is making a real and lasting change to the lives of people in developing countries.

What do you love about speaking to supporters? i think it’s great being able to speak to people who have a similar passion and interest in trying to change the world for the better.

Rekha, 12 years at PlanHas a supporter said something to you that made your day? Yes. one supporter said to me:

“i am glad that you remember me; i hope that you are well and it is great to know that you are still with Plan as you are a great asset to them.”

and another one said:

“i am hugely appreciative of all the work and effort that went in orchestrating and organising my visit, so thank you very much!”

Do you have an experience that you would like to share? i love and enjoy arranging sponsor visits and 99.9% of sponsor visits are quite successful. i take great pride/pleasure when sponsors come back very satisfied and happy after the visit. I recently organised a visit for our Board Member neil Thompson and his parents and he was very pleased with the visit.

Kristine, 9 years at PlanWhat do you love about speaking to supporters? i really enjoy the warmth of conversations with people who really care about and want to do something to help children and their families break the shackles of poverty.

Do you have an experience that you would like to share? i am constantly inspired by the learning environment here at Plan. You can learn something new every day. it can come from the dedicated field staff in the communities that we work with, visitors from these countries and their inspirational stories or our own staff who willingly share information and experiences.

Kirby, 2 years at PlanWhat do you love about working at Plan? What i love most is knowing the difference, albeit small, my contribution makes. supporter service is a great, supportive team and i’m fortunate enough to be a part of such a group.

Do you have an experience that you would like to share? Not anything specific, although I do find it quite touching and inspiring to see how dedicated and committed the volunteers who work with us are – some of them have been with us such a long time!

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Meet our Supporter Service team!

I love working for an organisation that is making a real and lasting change to the lives of people in developing countries.‘

‘If you’ve ever called Plan with a question, to make a donation or to organise a trip to visit your sponsored child, chances are you’ve spoken to one of our fantastic Supporter Service team members.

It was no surprise to us when they were named the top performing customer service team in Australia

for 2010 – they know Plan inside out, are amazingly dedicated and they’re just a whole lot of fun!

Here, we introduce the team so you can put some faces to the names. It might surprise you to find out how long some of them have been with Plan.

The Voice of Youth

Plan’s inaugural Youth Project Team (YPT) is a mix of talented young minds that care about the world. We have ten members, with ages ranging from 15 to 25, and each of us provides a unique level of experience, knowledge and skills.

We are passionate about the rights of children, poverty alleviation and international development. ultimately the YPT aims to influence and create change in the community, and to demonstrate the importance of child rights.

We want to inspire others, especially young people, to be as passionate about global issues as we are. it’s vital to communicate and engage with young people as a means to protecting the future and activating change. Young people will have a critical role to play. Who better to reach out and do that than our very own Youth Project Team!

as members of a generation who are constantly being criticised and stereotyped as ‘lazy, selfish and narcissistic’, we want to erase that perception. We are ten young australians who are hard-working, passionate and selfless who seek to spread Plan’s message.

our journey as a team began on 27 april, when we took part in a three-day planning and induction weekend. There were many activities, including a presentation by Paul from the global Poverty Project, fun team building with the Playback Theatre, asset mapping with David hood, planning for the year ahead and identifying global citizenship in the world around us. Through these activities the spirit of the Youth Project Team was born.

To represent our first steps, the image of shoes entitled ‘Zhi’s shoes’ was chosen as a symbol for our work ahead. it may seem odd to have a pair of shoes representing your work but really it embodies the beginning of our journey of a million miles. We are fresh and ready for action, just like zhi’s shoes. We are full of energy, ready to go places and experience new things.

over the year ahead, we will work together as a team to create projects that are at the core of our beliefs. our aim is to build a movement and inspire others to acknowledge the importance of child rights.

Being part of a group of people who care so much about making a difference in the lives of others is inspiring in itself. The YPT provides an opportunity not only for our group but for other youth and individuals to get involved and become champions for the rights of children.

We want to walk the walk just as much as we talk it.

If you are aged between 15 and 25 and are interested in getting involved in the work of the Plan Youth Project Team please contact Charlotte Gourley: charlotte.gourley@plan.org.au

earlier this year, Plan in australia created the Youth Project Team – a group of young australians who will use their passion and creativity to raise awareness of Plan’s work and help make a difference for young people around the world. We thought we’d let them tell you what it’s all about.

FUTUREVoice of the

The team took part in a ‘photovoice’ activity on the theme of global citizenship. This image, titled ‘Zhi’s shoes’, represents where they are now, and where they are going in the future.

The Youth Project Team met Plan CEO Ian Wishart, top left, at the planning and induction weekend in April.

The team thanks the inspiring speakers who came to the planning and induction weekend.

The team takes some time out at the planning and induction weekend in April.

The team gets creative with the windows in Plan’s office at Southbank, Melbourne.

»"We are ten young australians who are hard-working, passionate and selfless who seek to spread Plan’s message."

WINTER 2012 The Magazine of Plan in ausTralia Global ChIld 17

supporters in focus

earlier this year i visited a child that i sponsor through Plan. since i was in West africa for other reasons i thought it would be interesting to pay a visit to Burkina faso, where i am sponsoring a 15-year-old girl named Kouka.

The Plan staff that work in-country are so helpful when you visit. The Plan headquarters in Burkina faso is in the capital ouagadougou (often shortened to something that sounds like Wagga) and there i met with Yolande Valerie who is the sponsorship coordinator and who accompanied me to the field to meet Kouka. luckily, she spoke english and helped me in a country where bilingual people speak french as well as Moore, but not english. after several hours of driving – on roads that were empty except for utes loaded inside and outside with people, motorbikes and lots more – we arrived.

as always with Plan, sponsorship money is used to fund Plan programs in your sponsored child’s community. When visiting a sponsored child you are also taken to see these projects, which benefit all members of the community for the long term. I was taken by the impressive local Plan organisers to see a Plan-supported health centre. at the centre i saw a line of women with babies who were there to have health check-ups, waiting to receive vaccinations and be weighed – it was great to see.

Next was on to meet Kouka. Meeting her for the first time was wonderful. At first she was shy, but after sharing a welcome drink she relaxed and we became good friends. unfortunately

we had no common language, but this is usually the case and Yolande was very helpful with translating.

in Kouka’s village i was received as an honoured guest. a great ring of people had assembled beneath the mango tree to watch and take part in a dance and music performance, to share drinks of friendship and to give inspired speeches. The extreme poverty does not come to the surface – the people of Burkina faso seem so happy. The elders of the village also took part in that ceremony.

it was good to meet Kouka’s family and to see how they live. Women have separate huts from men, so Kouka and her mother are in one hut and her father with her brother in another. in the middle of the little village there is a cooking place. Water is carried in from a well some distance away. i also saw Kouka’s school and it seemed as though it was very well run. i realised that Kouka was attending extra classes that are designed to help older children to improve their reading, writing and arithmetic.

It is always very encouraging to visit Plan offices in the field. i have now seen how Plan operates in ecuador, Colombia, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia and every time i’m left with the impression that our sponsorship money is going to the right kind of use.

If you would like to find out more about visiting your sponsored child, send an email to info@plan.org.au or call us on 13 75 26.

a sponsor’s journeyGosta Lynga has sponsored eight children through Plan since 1978. recently he made his sixth visit to a child he sponsors.

gosta sings a song with the children from Kouka’s school.

Parents bring their children for check-ups at a Plan-supported health centre.

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Kouka (in the yellow shirt) and her family.

The situationa new food and nutrition crisis is affecting the sahel region of West africa. More than 18 million people – almost half of them children – are at risk from hunger. More than 3 million children under five are already affected by malnutrition, one-third of them severely; it is an extremely serious condition that frequently results in death.

Although the extremes of drought and flood have destroyed crops or caused them to fail, the situation is not just caused by a lack of food – other pressures mean that most people can’t afford food from markets, even when it is available. food prices in Burkina faso, Mali and niger were already above average, but they have risen even more, further increasing the difficulties faced by communities in one of the poorest regions of the world.

In addition to recent conflicts, the return of hundreds of migrant workers from nearby countries and a flow of refugees from Mali into one of the most affected areas of niger have further strained an already stressed food supply.

Many families have had to sell their livestock to cover their household food needs. some are eating seeds instead of saving them to plant for the next season, and others are resorting to eating leaves and berries that have minimal nutritional value, and are sometimes even mildly toxic.

What does this mean?hunger and malnutrition is the number one risk to health worldwide – greater than aiDs, malaria and tuberculosis combined. for children, the effects of prolonged hunger and malnutrition are devastating; because the body doesn’t receive enough food, it uses up all its stores of fat. When that’s gone it begins to use up muscle. Without help, even if the child survives, their physical and mental growth is stunted – permanently. in the worst cases it can result in brain damage.

last year in niger alone 300,000 children were treated for severe malnutrition – 15 per cent of all children treated for malnutrition worldwide. This number is set to dramatically increase.

The 2004 asian Tsunami took 273,000 lives, and the haiti earthquake more than 217,000. Without immediate and continued support from the international community, the death toll in West africa is likely to be even higher.

a lack of adequate funding to provide even the most basic relief remains the greatest challenge to the response across the region. The un says $1.5 billion is needed, but currently only 43 per cent of that has been promised.

What is Plan doing?hunger can trap people in a cycle of poverty that is often impossible to escape.

Plan’s focus in West africa is to provide emergency food aid to save lives, while also supporting long-term, sustainable solutions that address the causes of hunger. our goal is to use these twin strategies to help prevent future food crises in the developing world.

short-term actions being undertaken to help the children of West africa include emergency food distributions, malnutrition management including therapeutic feeding, and school feeding programs that mean children get adequate food and maintain their education.

long-term work includes providing seeds and tools to grow crops and raise livestock, training farmers on improved techniques, supporting school and community garden projects, and helping communities to improve their water harvesting and food storage techniques.

Support Plan’s work by making a donation to our Stop the Hunger appeal. Go to plan.org.au or call 13 75 26.

West africa Food Crisis: the facts

a new food and nutrition crisis is affecting more than 18 million people in West africa. What does this mean, why is it happening and what needs to be done?

Global learning

This young boy is one of 170,000 people who have fled conflict in Mali to neighbouring countries, increasing pressure on communities who are already struggling to find enough food for themselves.

The australian government supports our work in niger through a $1.5 million humanitarian Partnership agreement grant from ausaiD. WINTER 2012 The Magazine of Plan in ausTralia Global ChIld 21

WINTER 2012 The Magazine of Plan in ausTralia Global ChIld 23

CAMEROON

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

EQUATORIAL GUINEA CONGO

CABINDA(PROVINCE)

ANGOLA

BOTSWANA

NAMIBIA

SOUTH AFRICA

NIGER

CHAD

MAURITANIA

BURKINAFASO

SENEGAL

NIGERIA

MALI

AFRICA

INDICATORS OF A CRISIS

170,000 THE SAHEL REGIONThe Sahel is an area of Africa south of the Sahara desert that runs across the continent from the west coast to the east coast. The current food crisis is affecting the countries of the Sahel in West Africa, including Cameroon, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mali, Senegal and more.

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Tens of thousands of refugees have fled conflict in Mali to surrounding countries. This young mother and her daughter are in a Plan-supported refugee camp in Burkina Faso. Photographer: Mike Goldwater

You can help Stop the Hunger

Call 13 75 26 or visit www.plan.org.au

A new food and nutrition crisis is affecting the Sahel Region of West Africa. More than 1.1 million children are facing severe malnutrition, and 18 million people are at risk of hunger.

For as little as $49 you can help provide emergency food supplies and other essential services to malnourished children and their families at risk of starvation through our Stop the Hunger appeal.

Please donate today.

Halima lives in Niger with her four children. Her husband has gone to Nigeria to look for work and promised to send money back. None has come through yet. Twice a day, she and her children eat the residue from pounded millet to survive. It has no nutritional value – it is usually fed to animals.

“I’m scared we won’t be able to find other food and we’ll just eat millet residue and one of my children will die.” Halima, Niger.