The American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (JDC), the world’s largest Jewish humanitarian assistance organization, in collaboration with EcoWorks International (EWI), a not-for-profit NGO working with poor communities around the world, is sponsoring a hospital-based feeding program, based out of the remains of a collapsed local hospital, to aid the victims of the devastating earthquake and aftershocks in Haiti. On January 17th, EWI’s team arrived in Haiti to set up the feeding program in Port-au-Prince that will serve patients, camp residents and orphans for the next two months.
For the past year, EWI has been designing and implementing a comprehensive program to“Break the Cycle of Poverty” in Ganthier, Haiti (population 72,000), located about 20 miles east of Port-au-Prince. The program is designed to be totally self-sufficient and self-funded after only one year of operation.
“JDC is proud to partner with EcoWorks International in providing a feeding program to assist in aiding the countless victims of Haiti’s catastrophic earthquake and aftershocks. Through our previous partnership in 1994 after the genocide in Rwanda, we are aware of EcoWorks International’s strengths with its strong network of grassroots organizations and experience in emergency relief and reconstruction in countries destroyed by natural disasters, war or genocide. EWI’s pre-established and stabilized work in Haiti allows us to quickly respond to the critical needs of the Haitian people,” said Steven Schwager, JDC’s Chief Executive Officer.
JDC continues to conduct a full and rapid assessment of the situation on the ground, and is reaching out to its network of partners to determine immediate needs of the hardest-hit areas. The efforts are part of JDC’s International Development Program (IDP), which provides immediate relief and long-term assistance to victims of natural and manmade disasters. JDC and its partners worldwide have implemented similar relief efforts in more than 60 countries. Many IDP-operated programs are ongoing and are helping to rebuild infrastructure and community life in disaster-stricken regions.
