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Tropical Cyclone Pam highlights the important role of Vanuatu Church Network
April 22, 2015
The following article was written by Mrs Bertha Tarileo, Vanuatu Church Partnership Program (VCPP) Support Facility Manager /Facilitator, and published in the Port Vila Daily Post on Saturday 18 April 2015.
It is about the Vanuatu Church Partnership Program, which ABM and its Vanuatu church partner, the Anglican Church of Melanesia, have been part of since 2009 when it first started. It makes the key point of sustainability of aid programs like the Church Partnership Program, which builds on the combined strengths of a number of Vanuatu Churches and their Australian Church partners, to deliver ongoing development (and now emergency response) to the people of Vanuatu, particularly in rural areas.
It is currently part funded by DFAT and part funded by the Australian Church partners. The Anglicans are working in Literacy and Numeracy, Water, Sanitation and Hygiene, and Disaster Risk Reduction, especially in the north of the country.
Pictured below from left is Miss Adlyn Nelson, ADRA Food Security Project Manager, and Mrs Bertha Tarileo, VCPP Support Facility Manager /Facilitator.
Tropical Cyclone Pam Highlights the Important Role & Work of Vanuatu Churches to Effectively Reach People In Need Through Existing Strong Church Networks Both In Emergencies And Development Work
Tropical Cyclone Pam has highlighted the important role of the Vanuatu Churches in showing compassion and inclusion and reaching people in need through the strong church networks, not only in times of emergencies but also through ongoing development work to provide needed services to the community people.
The churches in Vanuatu through the Vanuatu Church Partnership Program (VCPP) and the Vanuatu Christian Council (VCC) have been working together for the past four (4) years and will continue to work together after TC Pam relief and recovery measures have been completed. As our partner church the Presbyterian Church of Vanuatu (PCV) have rightly stated in the Daily Post this week, the churches in Vanuatu are here to stay and their important work in serving the community people will continue even after our friend helpers from overseas have come and gone after cyclone response work is completed.
The churches partnership strength lies amongst the bigger mainline churches working together in partnership under the VCC and with our ANGO partners working closely with local partner churches. The VCPP partnership group includes the Anglican Church of Melanesia (ACOM) in collaboration with the Anglican Board of Mission Australia, the Presbyterian Church of Vanuatu (PCV) in collaboration with Uniting World, the Seventh Day Adventist (SDA) through the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) Vanuatu Office and VCC in collaboration with Act for Peace (AfP) Australia. Two of VCPP’s development partners AfP and ADRA are based in Vanuatu, AfP since 2010 as an ANGO partner to VCC as well as to the Apostolic Church of Vanuatu (ACV) and the Assemblies of God (AOG) Vanuatu. ADRA Vanuatu Office was established in 2008 doing development work apart from the VCPP in Vanuatu communities and will continue after TC Pam relief response/recovery process is over.
Currently the Church Partnership Program covers projects in Health and Education and Disaster Risk Resilience (DRR). The Education project includes Literacy & Numeracy led by ACOM Vanuatu and Teacher training & Library trainings led by PCV, while the Health Project includes WASH activities led by SDA/ADRA and EYE & Dental health activities led by PCV and the DRR Project led by VCC.
In response to Cyclone Pam relief program, the churches including VCPP partners are actively involved by mandate from the Vanuatu Government NDMO through the VCC DRR Project in partnership with AfP to meet immediate needs of the people, as well as in the recovery/rebuilding process.
But even after all the cyclone relief response and recovery work has been completed, the work of the churches here in Vanuatu communities for many years to come, will remain and will continue through their strong church networks.
Bertha Tarileo
(VCPP) Support Facility Manager /Facilitator
