School equipment distributed in Tacloban, Roxas, as UNICEF aid flows into Philippines

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2013-11-27

UNICEF is distributing School-in-a-Box and recreation kits in Tacloban and Roxas, enough to serve 525,000 children still living amidst the chaos left by Super Typhoon Haiyan.

More than 350 'School-in-a-Box' kits arrived in Cebu on Saturday morning on a flight donated by KLM. Each kit contains enough stationery, reading material, arithmetic and numbering learning tools to supply 15,000 children aged six and up for three months.

Among the supplies were also 99 large tents which will be used as school classrooms and safe spaces for children.

The cargo also included recreation kits for at least 25,000 elementary and high school children aged 6 to 15. These kits comprise footballs, handballs, volleyball nets, frisbees and skipping ropes, so that children have the opportunity to play either individually or in groups.

UNICEF estimates that 1.14 million preschool and school-aged children have been displaced by the Typhoon. In addition, thousands of schools are being used as evacuation centres, so children have no place to go to school. Even when evacuees leave, the schools will need to reconstructed or completely rebuilt.

After the enormous shock experienced by tens of thousands of children, the return to learning will restore some sense of normalcy for them.

A range of pharmaceutical supplies including amoxicillin, retinol and albendazole were also in the shipment.

Source: United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund

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