[TOKYO, Japan, 13 June 2011]
At 2:46 p.m. on Friday, 11 March, an earthquake of extraordinary scale shook north eastern Japan, sending strong tremors across the country, even as far as the UNICEF House in Tokyo. Later it was reported that this was an unprecedented 9.0-magnitude earthquake, the largest of its kind ever recorded in Japan. The most affected individuals in this type of disaster are always the children. On the day of the earthquake, the Japan Committee for UNICEF (JCU) posted a message on its website appealing to the importance of psychological care for children. The following morning the scale of the damage leftover by the earthquake and ensuing tsunami started to become more visible. After communicating with the UNICEF Headquarters, JCU began preparations to implement assistance with the cooperation of JCU prefectural chapters and co-op unions, as well as corporations and local cooperation organizations that have long assisted the activities of UNICEF. JCU continues to implement assistance while working together with UNICEF Headquarters, municipal governments in the affected areas, cooperation organizations, and other partners in order to restore normality to the lives of children as quickly as possible and ensure the best interests of children are considered in the reconstruction effort.
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| © Japan Committee for UNICEF |
On 11 June, exactly three months after the disaster, the Great East Japan Earthquake UNICEF Photo Exhibition opened at the UNCIEF House in Tokyo. This exhibit introduces a portion of the assistance activities carried out by JCU in the two months after the disaster. In the future, the exhibit is scheduled to visit JCU associations in various prefectures within Japan (see below for schedule). The exhibition is scheduled to be on display at the UNICEF House in Tokyo until early July. Photo journalist Kenichi Shindo, who has recorded the situation in the disaster-stricken coastal region of Miyagi, Iwate and Fukushima Prefecture since the earthquake, offered his complete support for the planning, composition and production of this exhibition.
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| © Japan Committee for UNICEF |
Since the onset of its assistance activities JCU has advocated the concept of “Build Back Better; reconstruct things into a new, better state, not simply to recover the past.” In order to put this concept into practice, JCU has joined hands with expert groups in Japan and has even begun to push the incorporation of a method of community building that facilitates easier child-rearing within the reconstruction plans of each area. Furthermore, JCU continues to utilize this opportunity to urge the central and local governments to further develop and implement policies that address problems related to children placed in socioeconomically vulnerable situations based on the standards stipulated in the Convention on the Rights of the Child and the recommendations of the Committee on the Rights of the Child.
JCU will continue to implement unique assistance measures tailored to the needs of disaster victims, and especially children, until the work of UNICEF is no longer needed in the disaster area. We thank all of our donors for their heartfelt assistance and cooperation.
| Dates | Host | Venue |
|---|---|---|
| 19 Jun. – 30 Jun. | Ehime Association for UNICEF | Ehime CATV Otemachi Open Studio |
| 28 Jun. – 4 Jul. | Chiba Association for UNICEF | Sogo Gallery, basement of the Sogo Chiba location |
| 16 Jul. – 30 Jul. | Hyogo Association for UNICEF | 1F lobby, Consumer Co-operative Kobe |
| 20 Jul. – 28 Aug | Chiba Association for UNICEF | Multipurpose Hall, Mother Farm |
| 31 Jul. | Iwate Association for UNICEF | Nahan Plaza |
| 1 Aug. – 4 Aug. | Iwate Association for UNICEF | Myoenji Temple |
| 5 Aug. – 7 Aug. | Iwate Association for UNICEF | Arena 4F, Kenmin Plaza |
| 18 Aug. – 23 Aug. | Kanagawa Association for UNICEF Hiratsuka Friendship Association | Hiratsuka Shimin Plaza |
| 24 Aug. – 28 Aug. | Hiroshima Association for UNICEF | Former Hiroshima Branch of the Bank of Japan |
| 25 Sep. | Kagawa Association for UNICEF | Alpha Anabuki Hall (Kagawa Prefecture Kenmin Hall) |
| 8 Oct. – 15 Oct. | Saga Association for UNICEF | Saga City Public Library |
| 27 Nov. | Hiroshima Association for UNICEF | Former Hiroshima Branch of the Bank of Japan |
| 17 Dec. | Miyazaki Association for UNICEF | Miyazaki Economic Federation of Agricultural Cooperative Direct Sales Office |
| Receiving Prefecture |
Type of Emergency Supplies |
Arrival Date |
Quantity | Donating Company |
Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Miyagi | Water | 19 Mar. | 12,288 bottles |
VanaH Co., Ltd. | Two-liter plastic bottles |
| Fukushima | Water | 22 Mar. | 12,672 bottles |
VanaH Co., Ltd. | Two-liter plastic bottles |
| Miyagi | Underwear for boys and girls | 22 Mar. | 200,000 | ||
| Iwate | Underwear for boys and girls | 23 Mar. | 30,000 | ||
| Fukushima | Water | 23 Mar. | 4,680 bottles |
KIRIN MC DANONE WATERS Co., Ltd. | Two-liter plastic bottles |
| Miyagi | Children’s shoes | 23 Mar. | 10,000 pairs |
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| Miyagi | Children’s diapers | 24 Mar. | 80 packs | P&G Japan | |
| Iwate | Children’s underwear | 24 Mar. | 9,700 | ||
| Fukushima | Water | 24 Mar. | 12,288 bottles |
VanaH Co., Ltd. | Two-liter plastic bottles |
| Iwate | Shoes | 26 Mar. | 1,404 pairs | Achilles Corporation | |
| Iwate | Underwear for boys and girls | 27 Mar. | 28,266 | ||
| Iwate | Boots | 27 Mar. | 7,462 pairs | ||
| Iwate | Wipes | 28 Mar. | 1,200 | P&G Japan | For babies |
| Miyagi | Recreation kits Early Childhood Development kits |
2 Apr. | 50 of each | Procured from the UNICEF Supply Division | |
| Iwate | Recreation kits Early Childhood Development kits |
2 Apr. | 50 of each | Procured from the UNICEF Supply Division | |
| Miyagi | Book bags | 6 Apr. | 70 | Nihon New Bag Chain | |
| Iwate | Book bags | 6-7 Apr. | 340 | Seiban | |
| Miyagi | Schoolbags | 8 Apr. | 18,000 | Procured from the UNICEF Supply Division | |
| Iwate | Schoolbags | 8 Apr. | 18,000 | Procured from the UNICEF Supply Division | |
| Miyagi | Personal security buzzers (for crime prevention purposes) | 8 Apr. | 5,000 | ||
| Iwate | Personal security buzzers (for crime prevention purposes) | 8 Apr. | 5,000 | ||
| Miyagi | Minicar | 8 Apr. | 3 cars | ||
| Miyagi | Nutritional supplements | From early April | 4,000 bottles | ||
| Fukushima | Water | 11 Apr. | 1,536 bottles | VanaH Co., Ltd. | Two-liter plastic bottles |
| Miyagi | Replenishments for recreation kits | 12 Apr. | 60 sets | ||
| Miyagi | Miniature toy cars | 12 Apr. | Approx. 1,200 | TAKARA TOMY | |
| Sagamihara* | Water | 12 Apr. | 12,288 bottles | VanaH Co., Ltd. | Two-liter plastic bottles |
| Miyagi | Play mats | 13 Apr. | Two types; 80 of each type | IKEA | |
| Miyagi | Drawing sets | 13 Apr. | 60 sets | IKEA | |
| Iwate | Preschool-size chairs, tables and low tables | 14 Apr. | 75 chairs; 11 tables; 9 low tables | Donated to preschools, primary schools, junior high schools and high schools in the disaster area as well as their new locations | |
| Miyagi | Mopeds | 15 Apr. | 5 | ||
| Iwate | Notebooks and stationery sets for primary and junior high school students | 15. Apr. | 16,700 sets | ||
| Miyagi | 183 computers; 57 copiers and fax machines; 61 printers | 18-21 Apr. | Distributed to preschools, primary schools, junior high schools and high schools in the disaster area as well as their new locations | ||
| Fukushima | Movable blackboards | 21 Apr. | 10 | ||
| Fukushima | Temporary toilets | 22 Apr. | 20 | ||
| Iwate | Geiger counters | 28 Apr. | 14 | For schools in Soma City | |
| Iwate | Dressing room/ breastfeeding partition system | 28 Apr. | 21 sets | ||
| Saitama* | Milk | From late April | Shelter in Futabamachi, Kazo City | ||
| Saitama* | Yogurt | From early May | Danone Japan | Shelter in Futabamachi, Kazo City | |
| Iwate | Color pencils (120 sets) and paint (240 sets) | 13 May | |||
| Iwate | Student lamps | 14 May | 15 | ||
| Iwate | Stationery sets | 16 May | 840 sets | ||
| Fukushima | Lockers | 16 May | 22 sets | For the Board of Education of Minamisoma City | |
| Fukushima | Computers | 16 May | 1 | Ishikawa Town Board of Education | |
| Miyagi | 2 copiers; 2 computers; 2 printers | May | For Higashi-Matsushima Day-Care Center and Watari Day-Care Center | ||
| Iwate | Water receiving tank, water purifier tank, water supply tank | May construction | May construction | ||
| Miyagi | Solar-powered vaccine refrigerator | 18 May | |||
| Fukushima | Fans | 30 May | 112 | Minamisoma City Board of Education | |
| Fukushima | Masks | 30 May | 100,000 | Minamisoma City Board of Education |
-Number of UNICEF Children’s Mini Libraries distributed: Approximately 130,000 books to over 650 locations (as of 6 June 2011).
-Number of children that have participated in the UNICEF “Let’s Play! The Outdoors Playtime Project” in Fukushima Prefecture: Approximately 5,600 (as of 26 May)
*Areas receiving disaster victims.
*In certain cases some supplies may be taken from prefectural supply storage warehouses and distributed to shelters and disaster sites in other prefectures.
As of 9:00 a.m. on 1 June 2011 (compiled by the Information and Public Affairs Division).