Helen Keller International Receives $300,000 Tsunami Relief Grant from the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation
April 29, 2005
New York - Helen Keller International (HKI) received a $300,000 grant from the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation (MSDF) for its project, "Tsunami Relief Through Micronutrient Supplementation in Indonesia." The 12-month project strives to safeguard the health of approximately 250,000 children and 200,000 households affected by the 2004 tsunami by providing vitamin and mineral supplements.
This new grant will enable HKI to reduce morbidity and mortality among Internally Displaced People (IDPs) by assessing the population conditions and by providing vitamin A capsules and zinc treatments, along with multivitamin and mineral supplements to complement food aid. While some of these IDPs are staying with relatives or friends, many of them are living in shelters of varying standards and are in need of shelter, food, clothes, medical aid and other assistance.
"The Micronutrient Supplementation Program addresses an essential need of tsunami survivors to help them improve their health and move forward with their lives," said Janet Mountain, executive director of the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation. ""Through the Foundation's support of Helen Keller International, we hope to significantly reduce the mortality risk for children and adults in Indonesia and mitigate the ongoing impact from the tsunami."
The World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and other agencies leading the tsunami disaster relief efforts have warned that the most immediate threat facing survivors is the spread of water-borne and infectious diseases. Scientific research has shown that vitamins and minerals play a critical role in the human immune system response to disease. Micronutrients such as zinc effectively reduce the duration and severity of diarrhea, while high-dose vitamin A capsules can reduce mortality from measles, diarrhea and other causes by 23 to 50 percent. HKI has already enabled distribution of 600,000 vitamin A capsules and 123,000 zinc tablets to tsunami survivors.
The magnitude 9.0 earthquake that struck on the morning of December 26, 2004 triggered massive tsunamis that left 100,000 people dead in Indonesia alone, the country hit worst by the disaster. In the Indonesian province of Aceh, one million people, which is a quarter of its population, have been displaced, including 250,000 children younger than 12 years.
The grant is part of the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation's initial $3 million pledge announced in December 2004 toward tsunami relief efforts in southern Asia to help provide support to the victims and contributes to the Foundation's mission to have a positive and measurable impact on the lives of children around the world.
April 29, 2005
New York - Helen Keller International (HKI) received a $300,000 grant from the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation (MSDF) for its project, "Tsunami Relief Through Micronutrient Supplementation in Indonesia." The 12-month project strives to safeguard the health of approximately 250,000 children and 200,000 households affected by the 2004 tsunami by providing vitamin and mineral supplements.
This new grant will enable HKI to reduce morbidity and mortality among Internally Displaced People (IDPs) by assessing the population conditions and by providing vitamin A capsules and zinc treatments, along with multivitamin and mineral supplements to complement food aid. While some of these IDPs are staying with relatives or friends, many of them are living in shelters of varying standards and are in need of shelter, food, clothes, medical aid and other assistance.
"The Micronutrient Supplementation Program addresses an essential need of tsunami survivors to help them improve their health and move forward with their lives," said Janet Mountain, executive director of the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation. ""Through the Foundation's support of Helen Keller International, we hope to significantly reduce the mortality risk for children and adults in Indonesia and mitigate the ongoing impact from the tsunami."
The World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), and other agencies leading the tsunami disaster relief efforts have warned that the most immediate threat facing survivors is the spread of water-borne and infectious diseases. Scientific research has shown that vitamins and minerals play a critical role in the human immune system response to disease. Micronutrients such as zinc effectively reduce the duration and severity of diarrhea, while high-dose vitamin A capsules can reduce mortality from measles, diarrhea and other causes by 23 to 50 percent. HKI has already enabled distribution of 600,000 vitamin A capsules and 123,000 zinc tablets to tsunami survivors.
The magnitude 9.0 earthquake that struck on the morning of December 26, 2004 triggered massive tsunamis that left 100,000 people dead in Indonesia alone, the country hit worst by the disaster. In the Indonesian province of Aceh, one million people, which is a quarter of its population, have been displaced, including 250,000 children younger than 12 years.
The grant is part of the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation's initial $3 million pledge announced in December 2004 toward tsunami relief efforts in southern Asia to help provide support to the victims and contributes to the Foundation's mission to have a positive and measurable impact on the lives of children around the world.