In brief The national campaign “Care” of the Belarus Red Cross Society Trainings on NCDs prevention and promotion of healthy life style for volunteers Annual meeting of the First Aid Education European Network (FAEEN) The round table dedicated to World Mental Health Day Training in volunteer management and development of community-based initiatives Discussion of the Chernobyl Recovery and Development Programme Safe travel abroad Round table on prevention of recidivism Essay contest dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the Red Cross Red Crescent International Movement’s Fundamental Principles Celebration of the UN’s seventieth anniversary Minimum Standards on Community-Based Home Care are elaborated HIV-prevention training Operation on assistance to displaced people from Ukraine. Second phase Working meeting within the RFL project International Humanitarian Law for representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Belarus Enhancing the preparedness and response capacities of the Belarus Red Cross and the Ukrainian Red Cross International conference on exchange of experience in the field of HIV/AIDS prevention The project “Happy doctor” for hospitalized children The essay contest on mental health
Belarus Red Cross Karl Marx Str. 35, 220030, Minsk, Belarus +375 17 327 14 17 info@redcross.by www.redcross.by www.facebook.com/redcross.by
The national campaign “Care” of the Belarus Red Cross Society On the 1st of October the annual campaign “Care” was launched, it was intended to coincide with the Day of Elderly People. Within the frames of the campaign all structural subdivisions of the Belarus Red Cross (BRC) hold events aimed at providing assistance to lonely, living alone elderly people, seriously ill and disabled people, as well as to the beneficiaries of the BRC visiting nurses service. Under the campaign there are in place the following actions: events on information materials distribution, performances of staff, fund raising, delivery of humanitarian aid to lonely, living alone people, pensioners and disabled people, organization and participation in festivals, meetings, home visits with the purpose to provide help to elderly people around the house. Charitable events in hospitals, residential care facilities take place as part of the campaign. The BRC volunteers visit veterans of the Great Patriotic War, multiple children families and low income families. Trainings on NCDs prevention and promotion of healthy life style for volunteers On October 5-7 and October 13-15, 2015 in Minsk within the frames of the project “Community Action for Health” trainings on NCDs prevention and promotion of healthy life style took place. More than 50 people participated in the trainings – staff members of oblast and regional BRC organizations, representatives of partner organizations – the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Social Protection, Culture, village councils, and leaders of 14 initiative groups on healthy life style, created in local communities of Polotsk and Senno regions of Vitebsk oblast, Osmyany and Slonim regions of Grodno oblast, Gorki city of Mogilev oblast. Annual meeting of the First Aid Education European Network (FAEEN) The BRC FA Coordinator participated in the annual meeting of the FAEEN that was held in Luxembourg on 8th - 10th October. The meeting was attended by representatives from 34 National Societies. The participants of the meeting discussed the issues of FA training for target groups with focus on people with disabilities to strengthen community resilience. Cooperation Agreement between the FAEEN and the Global First Aid Reference Centre and Terms of Reference for the network and the FAEEN Steering Committee were approved at the meeting. The agenda of the meeting also included election of some new members to the Steering Committee. The FAEEN Steering Committee is now composed of the representatives from the Belgian Red Cross, Irish Red Cross, Norwegian Red Cross, French Red Cross, Turkish Red Crescent and Belarus Red Cross.
Belarus Red Cross Karl Marx Str. 35, 220030, Minsk, Belarus +375 17 327 14 17 info@redcross.by www.redcross.by www.facebook.com/redcross.by
The round table dedicated to World Mental Health Day On 13 October the Belarus Red Cross Society conducted the round table dedicated to World Mental Health Day. Within the activity the staff of the BRCS’s center “Open Home” presented the results of two-year work, .the main achievements of the center and its guests. The partners of the BRCS shared the experience of jointed work and cooperation. A.Startsev, the Head of Republican Research and Practice Centre for Mental Health, S.Boltrushevich, the Head of Office, Belarus representation, IFRC, I.Abramovich, assistant to Honorary Consul of the Republic of Iceland, T.Gaprichnik, the delegate of the Swiss Red Cross, representatives of the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Republic of Belarus, volunteers and guests of the centre “Open Home” took part in the activity. Training in volunteer management and Discussion of the Chernobyl Recovery and development of community-based initiatives Development Programme On 13-14 October Brest regional organization of the BRCS held the training in volunteer management and development of communitybased initiatives for the leaders of regional volunteer groups. The volunteers were trained in the development of mini-initiatives, keeping of volunteer documentation, recruiting and training of new volunteers. As a result of the training 14 applications for mini-initiatives contest were developed. The contest is conducted within the project “Community-based volunteer initiatives for empowerment of citizens in the remote areas of Belarus” that is being implemented in Brest region with the support of the Danish Red Cross. These applications will be considered by the contest commission of the BRCS HQ for further implementation.
Viktor Kolbanov, Secretary General of the Belarus RCS, reported at Chernobyl Recovery and Development Programme meeting in Vienna, Austria. The meeting was focused on social and economic situation in the affected regions and resettlement zone administration. Viktor Kolbanov emphasized that prevention of cancer and other non-infectious diseases in affected regions counts as much as diagnosis of cancer. Special emergency response teams should be formed in Gomel and Grodno to respond to potential risks which may arise from the construction of Ostrovets nuclear power plant.
Safe travel abroad Gomel regional organization of BRCS organized a series of events connected to the European Day against Human Trafficking. The volunteers held information campaign on travel abroad for the passengers at the railway station 19 October. Volunteers handed out leaflets with recommendations for safe travel abroad, informed the passengers about the hotline in the Republic of Belarus on leaving and staying abroad. Gomel regional organization of BRCS together with the International Organization for Migration held training on "Raising awareness of employment management on human trafficking". The training was held in the frame of the project “Youth volunteering to fight trafficking in human beings” as a part of the international technical assistance.
Belarus Red Cross Karl Marx Str. 35, 220030, Minsk, Belarus +375 17 327 14 17 info@redcross.by www.redcross.by www.facebook.com/redcross.by
Round table on prevention of recidivism On October 20 a round table on “Prevention of recidivism, organization of social and labor integration for ex-offenders released from open type CIs and detention houses” took place in the Press Centre. Deputy Head of the Department of Execution and Punishment, MoI, S.A. Alyashkevich and Deputy Head of the Correctional Process Division of the Department of Execution and Punishment, MoI, A.N. Kralko participated in the round table. BRCS representative provided information on the project in which BRCS staff and volunteers supervise more than 50 (ex)-offenders before and after release. He also paid attention to high importance and significance of this kind of activity.
Essay contest dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the Red Cross Red Crescent International Movement’s Fundamental Principles On October 21 BRCS started to admit essays to “7 Red Cross Principles – 7 Instructor’s tools” contest for teachers of “Exploring Humanitarian Law” optional classes. The contest aims to support Red Cross Red Crescent International Movement’s campaign dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the Red Cross Red Crescent International Movement’s Fundamental Principles, to draw attention to Red Cross activities among teachers of “Exploring Humanitarian Law” optional classes and to promote IHL knowledge as an integral part of the pedagogical process.
Celebration of the UN’s seventieth anniversary From 23 to 29 October, representatives of the UN system in the Republic of Belarus, state bodies, diplomatic corps and nongovernmental organizations, with the participation of staff and volunteers of the BRCS carried out a week-long trip around the regions of Belarus by train "UN70 Belarus Express for Sustainable Development Goals" As part of this initiative the BRCS held a number of campaigns, roundtables, training activities and information sessions Minimum Standards on Community-Based Home Care are elaborated In October 22 - 23 the chief nurse of the BRC visiting nurses service Matusevich Y.V. took part in the seminar on summarizing the results of elaboration of Minimum Standards on CommunityBased Home Care. The seminar was held in Vienna, Austria under the auspices of the National Societies of the Austrian, German and Swiss Red Crosses and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent. The Belarus and Armenian Red Crosses represented the training programme on home care for volunteers. HIV-prevention training
The essay contest on mental health
The training on HIV-prevention was held on the The BRCS supported by the Icelandic Red Cross basis of Gomel regional organization in the and the International Federation of Red Cross and framework of the project “Regional Health Initiative Red Crescent Societies announced the essay for Eurasian region”. The volunteers from district contest on the theme "People with mental illnesses organizations of the BRCS took part in the training. and society: we are together." among the students, The training will help the volunteers to hold peer undergraduates and graduate students of higher education prevention activities in their districts. The educational institutions of the Republic of Belarus existing experience has shown the fact that well- The contest aims at raising awareness of the developed and conducted activities on peer general public to the relationship between people education raise the youth knowledge, form and with mental illnesses and society strengthen the values related to health issues and HIV-prevention Belarus Red Cross Karl Marx Str. 35, 220030, Minsk, Belarus +375 17 327 14 17 info@redcross.by www.redcross.by www.facebook.com/redcross.by
Operation on assistance to displaced people Working meeting within the RFL project from Ukraine. Second phase The BRC Senior officer on tracing Idael Geurrero Regional coordinators and accountants were attended a working meeting for heads of Tracing trained in assistance to displaced people from service of the Belarus Red Cross and the Moldova Lugansk and Donetsk oblasts of Ukraine on Red Cross held in Moscow on 28th October in the October 26-27 2015. The training was scheduled Tracing and Information Centre of the Russian Red within the second phase of the project on Cross (TIC RRC) within the restoring family links assistance to displaced people from Ukraine and (RFL) project. The following two days, 29th -30th raised practical issues related to voucher system October Heads of the Tracing service participated implementation. During the project implementation in a training on restoring family links organized by some 3000 families of displaced people from the TIC RRC and supported by the ICRC for 15 Ukraine (pensioners, large and single headed branches of the RRC. Issues of cooperation families, people with disabilities, pregnant and between the TIC RRC and the Belarus Red Cross breastfeeding mothers) will be rendered assistance were discussed and usage of RFL tools was based on their family size. The project consists of practiced in the course of these events. distribution of vouchers among beneficiaries and its change in retail network shops in Belarus. The assistance operation to be implemented by the Belarus Red Cross Society is funded by the ICRC and is totaling to 330,000 CHF. Moreover, the BRCS keeps on making fundraising efforts within the IFRC emergency appeal launched in summer 2015.
International Humanitarian Law for Enhancing the preparedness and response representatives of the Ministry of Internal capacities of the Belarus Red Cross and the Affairs of the Republic of Belarus Ukrainian Red Cross On October 29 training on International Humanitarian Law and Red Cross Red Crescent International Movement for representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs took place within “Integration of Ex-offenders into Society� project.
A working meeting within the Enhancing the preparedness and response capacities of the Belarus Red Cross and the Ukrainian Red Cross (PrepCap) project was held on 29th-30th October in Copenhagen, Denmark. The meeting was attended by representatives of the Austrian Red Cross, Such notions as IHL principles, protected persons, Bulgarian Red Cross, Belarus Red Cross, Danish determination of conflicts, means and methods of Red Cross, Italian Red Cross and Ukrainian Red warfare, responsibility for the violation of IHL were Cross Society. The aim of the meeting was to discussed during the training. The trainer used discuss the results of the assessment of priority both theoretical and practical methods of teaching needs of the BRC and the URCS in three main for the most effective assimilation of the material. project areas (First Aid, Psychosocial support and crisis communication) and to develop a joint plan of action as a follow up. A decision was taken to organize disaster management schools in Belarus and Ukraine in 2016 for both the Belarusian and Ukranian DM Teams. Volunteers of the both NSs will have an opportunity to practice the cooperation mechanism in managing natural and manmade disasters.
Belarus Red Cross Karl Marx Str. 35, 220030, Minsk, Belarus +375 17 327 14 17 info@redcross.by www.redcross.by www.facebook.com/redcross.by
International conference on exchange of experience in the field of HIV/AIDS prevention The Belarus Red Cross Society held an International conference on exchange of experience in the field of HIV/AIDS prevention within Youth against HIV – enhancing the Belarus Red Cross Society competence in the field of education about HIV/AIDS project in October 2015. The Conference was cofounded by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Poland in the framework of Polish development cooperation. The conference saw the participation of Pawel Jessa, Councilor on policy and economics to the Polish Embassy, representatives of the Polish Red Cross, Republican center on Hygiene, Epidemiology and Public Health, Association Belarusian AIDS Network, Belarusian Association of UNESCO Clubs, NGO Positive movement, NGO Vstrecha, AIDS Social Committee (SKA), National Bureau for Drug Prevention (Poland). The participants in the conference presented their activities in the field of HIV prevention, learnt approaches and practices of Belarusian and Polish organizations and discussed opportunities for further cooperation in the field of HIV and AIDS. The project “Happy doctor” for hospitalized children The project “Happy doctor” which is supported by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the Japanese Red Cross is being implemented in Vitebsk region. The aim of the project is the development and use of hospital clowning, art-therapy for hospitalized children by engaging volunteers into these activities, their further training and support. The BRCS’s volunteers use game-therapy which is necessary for early rehabilitation of children who are getting treatment in hospital facilities. A round table on the development of special manuals for volunteers engaged into hospital clowning was held in Vitebsk 28 October.
Belarus Red Cross Karl Marx Str. 35, 220030, Minsk, Belarus +375 17 327 14 17 info@redcross.by www.redcross.by www.facebook.com/redcross.by