Monday, 12 July 2010 marked the six month anniversary of the Haitian earthquake that rocked and rent the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. It was also the anniversary of an event that swung the rest of the world into action, mounting one of the biggest relief efforts in recent history.

Thanks to support from generous Australians around the country, Compassion Australia was-and still is-a significant provider of relief for Compassion assisted children and their families affected by the disaster. Months after the event, Compassion is still there- and will continue to be- whatever Haiti's future holds.

To celebrate all that Compassion has accomplished in Port-au-Prince over the last six months, here is an update on what we've achieved in Haiti and what we're still working on:

Temporary and transitional shelter

• So far, Compassion has distributed 4237 tarps through the 38 significantly affected child development centres in and around Port-au-Prince. Also, 1304 families have received corrugated metal sheets, wood frames in rural areas.

Health interventions

• About 8000 registered children and 7000 siblings and parents were seen through Compassion's mobile clinics.
• Medical supplies sent after the earthquake were used to treat Compassion-assisted children, their families and people in the communities. Additional supplies have been distributed to 69 affected projects and 15 hospitals, including the general hospital that hundreds of people attend daily.

• Two psychologists have been hired for six months to help address psychological needs of Compassion assisted children and their siblings and relatives as well as project staff in the aftermath of the earthquake.

Food security

• More than 30,000 food kits have been distributed. Each kit gives a family of five one meal a day for two weeks.

• All affected child development centres are operational again. All significantly affected projects received 35 full-sized bags of rice, 32 half full-sized bags of beans, 45 boxes of spaghetti and 36 boxes of water bottles, allowing them to serve children hot meals during regular activities.

Education

• The Haitian government has reopened some schools and extended the school term by three months into August. About 800 of Port-au-Prince's 5000 schools have reopened.
• As of 26 May, 2010, school attendance for Compassion assisted children was estimated to be at 80 per cent. After the earthquake, more than 500 registered children moved to the countryside where there is a Compassion project located and are attending school and activities there.

• We are working on restarting non-academic Leadership Development Program activities, despite universities still being closed

General

• Most sponsors have now been contacted about the status of their sponsor children in Haiti via either mail or phone. Approximately 1300 children are still unaccounted for. We must assume that these children have moved out of the area served by Compassion. We do not think they perished in the earthquake, because it would be unlikely for an entire family to perish and for no one to be aware of it. However, there is no real way for us to know definitively.
• We are processing letters and gifts to children in Haiti but sponsor travel to the country is still closed.