ReliefWeb

In brief

Programme purpose

Red Cross National Societies are community-based organizations. Support to improving the functioning of local Red Cross institutions, programmes and the resulting services, which then have an impact on vulnerable people, is at the heart of the Pacific regional office’s mandate.

The programme includes
· providing membership services to Red Cross National Societies in Australia, the Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, the Marshall Islands (currently in formation), Micronesia, New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu (currently in formation) and Vanuatu
· developing capacities in preparedness and response including responding to health needs during emergencies
· promoting legal preparedness for disasters
· providing tailored, integrated and consistent accompaniment to National Society self-development
· supporting programming that is responsive to community-identified priorities and delivering them through a strong branch and volunteer network that are in touch with the needs of vulnerable people
· encouraging young people to become more active in leading and participating in their national societies
· developing a distinctive, authoritative and consistent IFRC regional voice that speaks out on behalf of vulnerable people, and which influences and improves policy affecting vulnerability
· improving institutional memory within the membership and the sharing of good practice and lessons learnt
· supporting Pacific National Societies to contribute to global and regional policy and strategy dialogue
· coordinating the work of the International Red Cross Red Crescent Movement in the region within the IFRC’s mandate
· liaising and coordinating with non-Red Cross Red Crescent actors in disasters.

Financial situation: The total 2011 budget is CHF 2.58 million, revised up from the original budget of CHF 2.24 million of which 114 per cent is covered. Overall expenditure was CHF 993,614 or 38 per cent of the budget.

No. of people we help:

The Pacific regional office covers 16 countries and provides support to 14 National Societies. These National Societies, in turn, provide support to thousands of people. The National Societies are the Australian Red Cross, Cook Islands Red Cross, Fiji Red Cross Society, Kiribati Red Cross Society, Marshall Islands Red Cross Society (currently in formation), Micronesia Red Cross Society, New Zealand Red Cross, Palau Red Cross Society, Papua New Guinea Red Cross Society, Samoa Red Cross Society, Solomon Islands Red Cross Society, Tonga Red Cross Society, Tuvalu Red Cross Society (currently in formation) and the Vanuatu Red Cross Society.

Our programmes have reached over 200 staff and volunteers in Pacific National Societies. These same National Societies have reached over 50,000 people through their disaster response operations and longer-term programming in the first six months of 2011. The programme on HIV and sexually transmitted infection and volunteer non-remunerated blood donor recruitment programme reached approximately 24,000 people – mostly young people and members of high-risk groups – through community-based health and first aid (CBHFA) programmes, as well as youth peer education and social mobilization for voluntary blood donations. The CBHFA programme in Tuvalu benefited approximately 500 people with 50 volunteers trained in CBHFA.

Our partners

Our Movement partners are the American Red Cross, Australian Red Cross, the French Red Cross, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the Japanese Red Cross Society, the New Zealand Red Cross Society, the Netherlands Red Cross, Norwegian Red Cross and the Red Cross Society of China.

External partners and donors include a private foundation, Pacific governments, a range of donor governments (Australia, France, New Zealand, Japan, United Kingdom, United States), the European Commission as well as international and regional organizations including the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (the Global Fund), the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA), International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR), other United Nations agencies and the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC). NGOs, faith-based organizations and corporate and academic institutions are key partners at local level. Other partners include the Asian Development Bank and other corporate organizations. Support is provided either directly to National Societies or through the IFRC or ICRC regional offices.

· Contributing to the work of Pacific National Societies on a bilateral basis are the following Movement partners: Australian Red Cross, the French Red Cross, the New Zealand Red Cross, along with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

On behalf of the Pacific National Societies, the IFRC would like to thank all partners and contributors for their response to this appeal.