© UNICEF video
Children in Jacmel, southern Haiti, play with toys and games supplied by UNICEF to a pre-school run by Lauritas religious order. The school buildings were damaged in January's earthquake.

By Thomas Nybo

JACMEL, Haiti, 6 April 2010 – When the earthquake shook the mountains outside this port city in southern Haiti on 12 January, rural schools throughout the area were destroyed or damaged. Not only were classes cancelled for the short term, but looking ahead, parents were afraid to send their children back into damaged classrooms that they feared might collapse.

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UNICEF correspondent Thomas Nybo reports on a UNICEF programme to get toys and games to quake-affected Haitian children.

Among the compromised structures is a pre-school run by nuns belonging to the Lauritas religious order. It serves about 250 young children who suddenly found themselves without functioning classrooms or adequate covered play areas.

In response, UNICEF has delivered three large tents, along with 20 early childhood development (ECD) kits, to the school.

Supplies for children under six

On the day of the delivery, a large truck loaded with the supplies navigated the long and deeply-rutted dirt road through the hills, as volunteers cleaned the grounds and prepared the site for tents. The next day, more than 200 children showed up at the school and waited patiently while the ECD kits were unpacked.

UNICEF launched the kits worldwide last summer to help meet the needs of children under the age of six in emergency or post-crisis environments resulting from natural disasters and armed conflicts. Each kit contains 37 items designed to promote social interaction – not only between children, but also with their caregivers.

The kits include hand puppets, puzzle blocks, memory games and colouring pencils. UNICEF has distributed more than 1,000 of the kits in Haiti, and more are on the way.

A long journey to school

“What is amazing is that the children are walking, every day, eight kilometres in the morning,” said UNICEF Emergency Specialist Arnaud Conchon. “They wake up at 4 a.m. to come here, and they go back in the afternoon with their parents. So they are really, really willing to have access to play and to learn and to be part of these interactive activities.”

One of the parents at the Lauritas-run pre-school is Stephanie Saint-Fleur. She and her five children escaped their house just moments before it collapsed in the earthquake.

he day the ECD kits arrived, Ms. Saint-Fleur walked an hour with her children to get here. She had to carry her youngest daughter, whose legs are paralyzed but who had no trouble dancing with her upper body as the toys were distributed throughout the tent.

‘The tents are a haven’

“We are so happy to receive these toys and supplies,” said Ms. Saint-Fleur. “And the tents make us feel secure, because we are scared to return to our damaged houses…. We don’t want to send our kids into damaged classrooms, so the tents are a haven.”

She explained to a visitor that her family is sleeping outside at night with no roof over their heads. She has many unanswered questions about the family’s future – most important, how will they rebuild their home? But for a few hours, at least, she was content, knowing her children would have many more days like this one.

“It’s very comforting for me as a mother to see my daughter here enjoying herself,” Ms. Saint-Fleur.

Model for rural areas

UNICEF is encouraging communities like this one near Jacmel to develop their own ECD materials. Along with the kits and tents provided by UNICEF, this sustainable approach gives children access to stimulation, early learning and play, without making the community dependent on external aid.

“We are establishing a model here,” said Mr. Conchon. “I can see the enthusiasm of the community here, and really, we hope that we can establish a good model that we’re going to replicate and scale up in other places – especially in these rural areas that are somehow forgotten.”

All around him, the silence of empty classrooms was broken by the laughter of children.

Discuss this topic in our ‘Ask the ECD Expert’ section.

© UNICEF Haiti/2010/Bakody
Fraternal twins Jean-Rene and Jean-Raymond Michel, 13, are all smiles after their first day back to school in Jacmel, Haiti.

By Jennifer Bakody, with additional reporting by Jill Van den Brule

JACMEL, Haiti, 5 April 2010 – Almost three months after the massive 12 January earthquake devastated the country, the Haitian Ministry of Education, with the support of UNICEF and its partners, has issued a nationwide call for children to return to school.

The call marks the first step in an effort that aims to return more than 700,000 students to schools over the next two months, and even more by the start of the new academic year in September.

The Government has also announced that the current school term will be extended until August, to provide Haiti’s children with more time to catch up on the months of learning they lost due to the earthquake.

Returning to school

Ecole Sainte Therese in Jacmel, a state school with 614 primary students, was damaged during the earthquake. But classes are resuming thanks to the tarpaulins and other supplies provided by UNICEF and its partners.

Twin brothers Jean-Raymond and Jean-Rene Michel, 13, are happy to be back in classes at Ecole Sainte Therese, saying that they were bored and restless at home, wondering when they’d be able to return to school.

Following the earthquake, they spent their days outside in the streets, and their nights in a tent with their family of eight. Jean-Raymond says that being inside a building still makes him anxious.

“We came [to the school] and we saw the tent, and I liked it immediately,” he says. “Our teachers have arranged it nicely for us. They’ve even arranged our benches the way they were before, inside in our classrooms.”

Jean-Rene says the whole family is happy about the resumption of school, as their father, mother and grandmother were eager to see the boys’ minds engaged.

“Our parents had broken hearts for us,” says Jean-Raymond.

A passion for learning

The 12 January earthquake killed an estimated 38,000 students and more than 1,300 teachers and other education personnel, and left more than 4,000 schools and the Ministry of Education’s headquarters destroyed. All available data on education was lost. An estimated three million students are believed to have suffered an interruption to or complete cessation of their education.

UNICEF and its partners have worked with the Haitian Government to provide 3,000 school tents to date, along with kits of educational materials and recreational items, and school furniture to assist children whose schools were destroyed, or who have moved to temporary camps after losing their homes.

Orientation sessions have been provided to teachers and volunteers, and an interim curriculum has been introduced that covers basic life skills, psychosocial support and disaster preparedness.

“The demand for education is very high in Haiti. There is a clear thirst for learning amongst children and families,” said UNICEF Haiti Acting Representative Françoise Gruloos.. “Families value education far above any other service and we want to embrace this passion for learning.”

UNICEF has also provided seven prefabricated offices for the Ministry of Education and is working with the Ministry and its partners on a model for earthquake-proof schools using innovative building technologies − including environmentally friendly compressed earth blocks.

Restoring hope

Despite living a day-to-day existence, Jean-Raymond and Jean-Rene still see a future full of possibility for themselves.

“I want to be a MINUSTAH [UN peacekeeping] soldier, so I can keep my parents safe,” says Jean-Rene.

“I want to be a priest… to help all the people who are sick, and make them feel better,” adds Jean-Raymond

UNICEF believes that education provides a lifeline for such hopes in times of crisis.

“Returning to education is the key to restoring hope, but it is a long-term process that requires total commitment from all partners,” said UNICEF Acting Chief of Education Mohamed Fall. “Education is the foundation upon which Haiti can rise again − a foundation that can stand in the face of an earthquake and also create the basis for a safe, secure future for Haiti’s children.”

©2010 Carlos Vasquez
Victor and Father Louis, Montagne Jaquot-Merlin, Haiti.

23 Feb 2010 – Victor Vincent Kinyanjui, from Kenya and WASH specialist for UNICEF Sierra Leone, and I set out early in morning to visit a rural school on top of mountain Jaquot-Merlin. The school is run by Father Louis Marrie from France. In order to get there we had to cross a dry river that shows clear signs of bank erosion due to heavy water flow during the rainy season.

Far away you can also see landslides manifested as white scars on the side of the mountains. The road up to the school was handmade by the local village to allow World Food Programme trucks to deliver much needed food supplies. After the earthquake the local community saw an increase of 20% of people over all. So far UNICEF has provided this village one tent for the school and one for the medical facilities. Both tents were delivered by helicopters three mountains away. Father Louis told us how difficult it was to get the pilots to drop the tents in the right place and the difficulties they had carrying the tents back to the community.

Once at the site we quickly drew a schematic site plan on the ground to locate 2 more tents, toilets and a water point. The wind movement and sun orientation were considered to make these decisions. We noticed the presence of what looked like volcanic rocks or lava in substantial quantities.

After exploring two separate fresh water springs, we decided to select the second water source down the hill, to make our proposal for the water collection system and transport of water up to the school premises. The main issue that Victor stressed was the need to 1) establish a community water committee and 2) encourage behavioral change for the consumption and management of water. We also stressed the need to implement a hygiene program through the school.

The water spring serves approximately 10 families with around 60 people total. The school population will be roughly 480 students in double shift system.

Main agreement to provide water to the school has the following components:

• Do not disturb the natural flow of the spring
• Build reservoir (3 cement bags of 50lbs) at source of water spring location
• Install walls and roof to capture the water; rough calculation shows 10lt of water/minute. Water level never to be higher than spring source
• Spring will provide 7,000 lt of water over night (12 hrs)
• Provide 4” PVC pipe below water source to water tank and 1” overflow pipe also below the level of the spring source
• 4” pipe to follow contour of hill to lower flat area to connect to two interconnected water 5,000 tanks
• 1 tank for the school, 1 tank for the community
• Provide solar pump to move water from tanks to school over the hill
• Provide third tank at school site with taps for hand washing and drinking water, close to latrines
• Solar panel and switch to be located at school site
• Community to provide 2 extra tanks to collect rain water
• Community to establish a “water committee” to manage water

UNICEF will provide all the materials and technical drawings. Father Louis will mobilize the community for both the construction and water committee group.

Carlos Vasquez
Architect
UNICEF, Education Section

Related link: Ask the Architect

© UNICEF/NYHQ2010-0167/Noorani
Steve Cherival (left), 8, and Richard Cherival, 5, play with a board puzzle from a UNICEF Early Childhood Development kit at the Lakay Don Bosco Centre, a residential care facility for children in Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital.

By Roshan Khadivi

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti, 17 February 2010 – The first day of school in a UNICEF tent classroom was a happy day for Yolanda Senatus, 9 – and a far cry from the tragic day she had experienced just a month earlier.

“I like to draw, sing and play with my friends. I am so happy today,” said Yolanda, who lost both her home and her school in the devastating earthquake that struck Haiti on 12 January.

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12 February 2010: UNICEF correspondent Guy Hubbard reports on UNICEF’s efforts to get children back to school a month after the earthquake in Haiti.

Yolanda is from Mount Jacquot, a hard-to-reach area in the vicinity of Port-au-Prince, the Haitian capital. The community is on top of a mountain that is accessible only by steep roads; at times, it’s even difficult for helicopters to land there. Nevertheless, a UNICEF supply team has delivered tents for the temporary school and a clinic in Mount Jacquot, as well as school kits, medicine and basic medical equipment.

The UNICEF team arrived at the location early one morning last week and helped community members set up the tents. Classes for 300 children began that day.

Two million affected

A full assessment of earthquake damage to Haiti’s education infrastructure has yet to be completed, but an estimated 90 per cent of schools in the Port-au-Prince area – and 40 per cent of schools in the southern port city of Jacmel and other stricken localities – were damaged or destroyed. This could mean that as many as 2 million children are being deprived of their right to education.

Working with the Haitian Ministry of Education, UNICEF is setting up 150 school tents for earthquake-affected children. The goal is to get all children back to school by early April.

“The temporary learning spaces will be used until the schools are rebuilt,” said UNICEF Education Specialist Andrea Berther. “In addition, UNICEF and the ministry are working to identify and quickly train teaching personnel.”

These efforts are critical because education provides children with a sense of safety and normalcy in times of chaos and crisis. Besides tent classrooms, UNICEF has started the distribution of 390 School-in-a-Box kits and 410 recreation kits in 10 rural departments where displaced quake survivors are now living. Each School-in-a-Box kit provides as many as 40 children with exercise books, pens, pencils and other learning materials.

Safe spaces for children

UNICEF is also establishing ‘child-friendly’ early-childhood and primary learning centres equipped with education supplies and learning materials, as well as access to safe drinking water and latrines.

“We will do an accelerated learning programme so the students do not lose the school year. This will be challenging in terms of coordination, but everyone is on board,” said Ms. Berther.

UNICEF and Save the Children, in support of the Ministry of Education, are now leading an education working group in Haiti. In addition to opening all primary schools, the goals for the next three months are to:

Ensure availability of temporary spaces for children and youth

Support national education authorities and administrators tasked with the coordination of the crisis response and eventual reconstruction of the system

Complete assessments and analyses to gain a fuller picture of educational needs in post-earthquake Haiti.

Community mobilization

In addition to its support for the Ministry of Education, UNICEF will encourage community mobilization to ensure that parent-teacher associations in affected areas are involved in the management and revitalization of the learning spaces.

The focus on education reflects the fact that the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti is a children’s emergency. Nearly 40 per cent of all Haitians are below 15 years of age, and recovery must start with children.

Moreover, UNICEF believes the unprecedented international commitment, support and funding seen since the earthquake struck must be used to build back better for all young Haitians. In the education sector, this means getting all children in school in a country where enrolment and attendance were poor even before disaster struck.

Back in Mount Jacquot, Yolanda continued to write and draw in her notebook. Her teacher, Onickel Paul, noted that the opening of the tent school had helped build trust, among the children and their parents, that things are getting better in Haiti.

© Chris Hondros/Getty Images - Boy pours water on his head in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Nearly half the Haitian population are under the age of 18.

By Pi James

NEW YORK, USA, 21 January 2010 – The death toll from the 12 January earthquake in Haiti continues to rise, despite the worldwide humanitarian efforts underway. With nearly half of the Haitian population under the age of 18, children have been significantly affected by this crisis.

Schools have been destroyed, and children are taking shelter in camps for the displaced, with many orphaned or separated from their families.

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Education essential to heal Haiti’s children

Podcast moderator Amy Costello spoke with Chris Hondros, senior staff photographer at Getty Images, and UNICEF’s Emergency Adviser on Early Childhood Development Arnaud Conchon, on the situation on the ground in Haiti and the importance of rebuilding and restoring education.

“Unbelievable” catastrophe

Chris Hondros senior staff photographer at Getty Images, who has travelled the world covering humanitarian crises, says that the devastation in Haiti “is of a greater scale and magnitude” then other emergencies he’s seen.

“I can’t think of another calamity in modern history that has struck a country so small, to such a tremendous degree… The scale here is unbelievable,” Mr. Hondros says.

© Chris Hondros/Getty Images - UNICEF is delivering 1000 Early Childhood Development Kits for emergencies containing materials such as soap and toys to Haiti, to help caregivers create a safe learning environment for young children.

“I’ve seen literally thousands of children that have lost their families and parents and that have just been picked up by strangers… many (have been)… killed instantly or have been dug out from the rubble since… (and) piled into mass graves on the edge of town and buried.”

Children suffer “toxic stress”

Mr. Conchon argues that education “has to be” one of the first lines of response in times of crisis.

“It is important to think about the children that are already separated (from their families), (and assist them in) retrieving a sense of normalcy, establishing some safe and secure spaces where they can interact with caregivers and this needs to be done in a holistic manner.”

“(If the children) are facing what we call ‘toxic stress’ which is typically what happens after (disasters such as) earthquakes, this can have devastating effects for the rest of their lives. So it’s really critical to think about establishing those safe spaces for children (as soon as possible)”.

According to Mr. Conchon, this is why UNICEF is sending 1000 of recently launched Early Childhood Development (ECD) Kits for emergencies to Haiti immediately.

These ECD kits take a life-cycle approach to addressing the holistic needs of young children, providing basic services related to hygiene and sanitation, health and nutrition, and protection and education, as well as containing an illustrative activity guide in French so caregivers can immediately establish an interactive and supportive environment for children.

Building back better

Mr. Conchon and Mr. Hondros agree that that the rebuilding of schools (including pre-primary) and the education system is vital to Haiti’s future.

“School is a safe haven for children, this is where they learn, this is where they build their resilience this is where they are protected, this is where they develop, this is how you save them basically in the long run,” Mr. Conchon says.

“In a lot of ways Haiti suffered a lot before… and this is an enormous spot light shined on Haiti now, finally… (If) the international aid that comes in… is well managed and does focus on the education system, I think in fairly short orders schools and secondary education systems can be rebuilt, creating perhaps in the long run, a better Haiti,” Mr. Hondros says.

Read more on Haiti and Education

Nine-year-old Marie Yolene Milord speaks with a Haitian volunteer at a field hospital at the MINUSTAH
© UNICEF/NYHQ2010-0052

“I don’t know how, perhaps in tents or the open-air…but even in wartime, schools must function…For the mental health of the population, the children and students need to go back to normal life. They will have hot meals and psychological treatment at schools.” -Joel Jean-Pierre, Minister of Education, Haiti

The following are links highlighting education response and information on the crisis in Haiti.

The Market – UNICEF Working with Haitian Government to Re-Open Schools, 11 February 2010
Winnipeg Free Press – Haitian children appear to be longing for their schools to reopen, 3 February, 2010
Huffington Post – Efforts in Haiti need to be long-term, 2 February 2010
OCHA – Update on Haiti Earthquake,
OneResponse – Earthquake Haiti 2010

A collaborative inter-agency website designed to enhance humanitarian coordination within the cluster approach.
CNN – Painful plight of Haiti’s -restavec- children, 29 January 2010
New York Times – As Aftershocks Continue, Haiti Ponders Rebuilding, 29 January 2010
Watch – Education After the Quake. 29 January 2010
Video: Inside Haiti’s school system – January 28, 2010

BBC – Davos 2010: Bill Clinton makes impassioned Haiti appeal, 28 January 2010

SOS Children’s Villages – Education key to healing Haiti’s future, 28 January, 2010
Bloomberg – Queen Rania Discusses Aid for Education @ World Economic Forum – Davos 2010
INEE – Update on education in Haiti, 21 January 2010
Save the Children – Responds to Today’s Aftershock in Haiti, Establishes Safe Spaces for Children, 20 Jan 2010
Save the Children Working Rapidly to Re-establish Schools as an Urgent Part of the Humanitarian Response, 20 January 2010
UNICEF Field Diary – Supplies and protection for unaccompanied children in Haiti, 19 January 2010
UNICEF – Concerned for the safety of Haiti’s most vulnerable children, 19 January 2010
Reuters – Haitian education system ‘totally collapsed’, 18 January 2010
UNESCO – Education is at the core of Haiti’s recovery and is the key to Haiti’s development, 15 Jan 2010
Help by donating to UNICEF
UNICEF – Supplies for Haiti
Haiti Fact sheet (PDF), 3 Jan 2010
UNICEF – Field Diary: Supplies and protection for unaccompanied children in Haiti
UNICEF – Statistics