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In Gambia, one of Africa's smallest countries, rain-fed subsistence agriculture is the main livelihood for the majority of its population of just under two million people.  An especially poor rainfall in 2011-12 resulted in the majority of the Gambian population not having enough to eat. The Red Cross responded to this emergency with the support of the Government of Canada. A “twin-track approach” was used which ensures people have the food for immediate survival, as well as a supply of good quality seed and fertilizer to meet future needs.

Like the rest of Haiti, the Jacmel community was left reeling after the January 12, 2010 earthquake devastated the country. This community of 40,000, capital of the Sud-Est department of Haiti, suffered significant damage to many buildings, including an estimated 70% of homes and the county hospital Saint Michel a Jacmel. Given that a strong and functional major health care facility is vitally important to both short-term and long-term recovery efforts, the reconstruction of Saint Michel Hospital was considered an essential task.

In October 2015, a young woman in the municipality of Bánica shared her positive experience with me.

Juana Maria Carvajal Colon, 21, who was eight- months pregnant at the time, lives with her husband and six-year-old daughter. Juana and her sister had recently participated in a Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (MNCH) training session organized by the Dominican Red Cross in her community.