Ross Skinner (Assistant Rotary Coordinator) reports:
On Friday 25th I attended a meeting here in Christchurch of the NDRF (National Disaster Relief Forum)
This forum is a grouping of a number of Non Government Organisations (NGOs) which through this forum have access to and representation on a number of central ‘Government’ organisations. Rotary has for some time had representation on this forum through PDG Stuart Batty and RNZWCS (Rotary NZ World Community Service). This forum has historically meet quarterly, primarily it seems to focus energies in lobbying Government and various other governmental agencies.
This forum will in my opinion be valuable to bring the various NGO agencies together to extract the best individual skill sets that the group has over this next long period of time of the recovery and ultimately the re building of affected peoples ‘lives and minds’. Members of the forum represented at this Friday meeting were World Vision, Tear Fund, CWS (Christian World Service) Disabled Persons Assembly, Save the Children, ADRA (the welfare arm of Seventh Day Adventists) Rotary (through PDG Stuart Batty and myself) and also ShelterBox through a SRT member. There were some other agencies like Caritas, Salvation Army and Oxfam and probably some others that were not present.
As can be seen a pretty diverse grouping and a number of these NGO’s will undoubtedly have an extended presence here in Christchurch for many months.
It is good to see the focus and the joining of minds and hands to provide a positive, coordinated difference in the recovery effort that will be needed over a long period in Christchurch. [DG Howard]
