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2015/07/27

【News Letter Vol.3】

Natural disasters have been occurring one after another in and out of Japan in the
past several months, including the eruption of Mount Shindake on Kuchinoerabu Island
in Kagoshima Prefecture, the earthquake on Borneo Island in Malaysia, and the eruption
of the Wolf Volcano in the Galapagos Islands.
 
In particular, the major earthquake of m agnitude 7.8 that struck Nepal on April 25
caused an enormous damage. As of June 2015, it has taken the lives of more than 8,700
people in Nepal, and many more in the neighboring countries including India, China and
Bangladesh. Throughout Nepal, 490,000 houses were completely destroyed and 270,000
were partially destroyed. Many people are still forced to live in tents or other places
away from their own houses.
Support organizations from Japan and other countries rushed over to Nepal, but their
rescue efforts faced tough situation because of repeated aftershocks, lack of hospitals
and doctors, poor conditions of the airport, and isolation of some mountainous villages
caused by landslides.
 
Asia Pacific Alliance for Disaster Management (A-PAD), which Civic Force helped
launch in 2013 with disaster relief groups in Asia, headed for the disaster stricken areas
the day after the earthquake to start emergency relief operations. With an aim to make
use of the experience of the Great East Japan Earthquake, A-PAD has been developing
a platform for mutual support between companies and NGOs in Asian countries. This
emergency relief activity w as a challenging op portunity for them to exercise their
“power of collaboration” which has been developed.
 
This issue of the Civic Force News Letter reports the voices of the people suffering
from Nepal earthquake and the emergency relief activities of A-PAD. We also report on
the progress of the projects underway in Tohoku area.
 
 
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