Hello Asia: A summer event for elementary school students

Tokyo was connected with Myanmar and Afghanistan through Skype

On August 21^st, 2013, AAR Japan held a summer event aimed at elementary school students called Hello Asia. Through this event, local AAR Japan office staff in both Yangon (Myanmar) and Kabul (Afghanistan) directly communicated with the participating children online using Skype. The event was held over two sessions, a Myanmar session and an Afghanistan session Thirty-three elementary school students and thirteen parents attended.

After a short introductory video by the local staff members, Takashi SAWAUCHI, previously a high school Social Studies teacher for thirty-eight years (currently a lecturer at the Faculty of International Studies at Bunkyo University), introduced the flags and the living environments of the countries using fun quizzes and bingo games. Afterwards, the children were split up into groups where they came up with questions they wanted to ask regarding life in each of the countries, such as the climate, the culture, work and school.

A video call with the AAR Japan office in Yangon. Local staff member Thinza (right on the screen) and Japanese staff Namiko MOTOKAWA (left on the screen). The MC for the event, Takehiro HOZUMI, is pictured front-right. (August 21^st, 2013)

Haiti: Protecting Children from Infectious Diseases

To Establish a Habit of Using Toilets and Washing Hands for Preventing Infectious Diseases

The Republic of Haiti, where AAR Japan has operated since when the country was hit by the devastating earthquake in January 2010, has been one of the poorest countries in the western hemisphere even before the earthquake. The country suffers poor infrastructure including roads, schools and hospitals and among others, the lack of sanitation facilities such as latrines and hand-washing facilities is severe. Added to this constant want, the earthquake devastated the country and forced Haitian people to live in the worsened sanitary condition. This led to the further prevalence of cholera in the autumn of 2010, which resulted in approximately 580,000 cases of infection and casualty of around 8,000 people. The government of Haiti also recognizes that promotion of good hygiene among children is one of the most urgent issues to address.

The living drainage flows and garbage is piled up on the road. (Port-au-Prince, October 2012)