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Peru Climate change and the effects of “El Niño” severely disrupts weather patterns in Peru causing heavy rainfall, floods, hurricanes, and droughts. In the coming decades, climate change and environmental degradation will very likely lead to more frequent and intense climate extreme events and thus further amplify the loss from disasters.
Save the Children’s Presence in Peru In 2007 Save the Children has implemented the ‘Safe schools adapted to climate change’ program with over $600,000 USD from DIPECHO. The program has reached over 2,400 children and over 31,000 community members directly. This project focused on reducing the impacts of extreme climatic phenomena on children’s health and on the livelihoods of vulnerable communities in the Huancavelica region. By the end of 2007 the project had upgraded 20 schools in the
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department of Huancavelica, insulating roofs and walls against the cold to help children avoid acute respiratory infections. In addition, the project recognised the right of children and adolescents to participate, involving them in practical measures for disaster prevention, adaptation and mitigation. Save the Children raised parents’ awareness, trained teachers, and taught children about their rights. Additionally, local authorities were lobbied to include risk management in development plans, with an emphasis on children’s rights. With the support of the Regional Emergency Coordination of Save the Children in Latin America and the Caribbean, we facilitated training processes.
Image: Marina, 14, at home after coming back from school, Cusco, Peru.