Lutherans Continue to Support Relief Efforts in Sudan

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Members of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) recently contributed $50,000 to the church's International Disaster Response fund to support relief efforts in Sudan. Civil war and drought in the north-central African country have led to the displacement of people and to food shortages.
"An estimated 30,000 to 50,000 internally displaced people have fled from fighting. They are in need of emergency aid," said the Rev. Y. Franklin Ishida, director for international communication, ELCAa Division for Global Mission.
"The fighting is taking place in south Sudan -- Raga and Wau. Government forces and the Sudan People's Liberation Army, the military wing of the opposition movement in the south, has caused massive displacement," Ishida said.
The Sudan Council of Churches is working to assist in the transport of the most vulnerable refugees to safe places and to help with food distribution, he said. According to the council, the most urgent needs are the transportation of stranded people, shelter and food, Ishida said.
Drought is causing a severe food shortage, Ishida said. "According to the World Food Programme, 600,000 Sudanese are affected by the drought. The fighting is bound to hamper Operation Lifeline Sudan, which is or airlifting food from Kenya to the conflict-ridden south of Sudan. The food shortage could develop into a major food crisis," he said.
The funds sent by the ELCA will help support relief efforts coordinated through Action by Churches Together (ACT), a worldwide network of churches and related agencies that meet human need through organized emergency response. ACT is based with the World Council of Churches (WCC) and Lutheran World Federation (LWF) in Geneva, Switzerland. The ELCA is a member of both the WCC and LWF. Church Ecumenical Action in Sudan (CEAS) will distribute the fund, Ishida said. "CEAS, a consortium of church-related agencies including the LWF Department for World Service, has been engaged in emergency and rehabilitation programs in the area," Ishida said. "Work needed includes emergency preparedness, food distribution, security, primary health care and safe water supply." LWF is a global communion of Christian churches in the Lutheran tradition. Founded in 1947, the LWF now has 133 member churches in 73 countries representing 60.5 million of the world's 64 million Lutherans. "The central point of the current [CEAS] plan is to establish a targeted supplementary feeding program for children under five years old through a network of 14 food distribution points. The total number of children to be targeted is 2,800, with a further 4,200 at-risk family members to be assisted as well," Ishida said. "Clinical malnutrition rates are exceeding 20 percent, especially among children." Coordinated through the ELCA Division for Global Mission, International Disaster Response helps relief agencies provide funds for food, medicine, drinking water, emergency shelter and other materials and supplies. Funds are also used to rebuild communities and to repair structures destroyed by major disasters.

INTERNATIONAL DISASTERS:

Editors: When listing organizations receiving funds for aid to
survivors of major disasters outside the United States, Puerto Rico or
the U.S. Virgin Islands, please include:

ELCA International Disaster Response
PO Box 71764
Chicago, IL 60694-1764
1-800-638-3522

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html