How the world can rebuild lives of war, disaster victims

Dubai - "So many refugees say they want to go back to their home country as soon as it is possible."

 Emergency disaster and relief for people caught in acute crises is vital during times of conflict or natural disasters. But, what are the long-term relief solutions, when a war ends or a country or city is left in ruins from a disaster?
"So many refugees say they want to go back to their home country as soon as it is possible. What we have to do as a world is support these communities, on the ground, so they can build a life in their country again."
Speaking to Khaleej Times on the sidelines of the 13th Dubai International Humanitarian Aid and Development (Dihad) conference, Andreas Papp, International Director of Global Emergency Response at SOS Children's Villages International, said although on-the-spot relief is important in emergency situations, things have to go further than that.
"We need to get these people back living again and new technology can have a huge impact on this."He said infrastructure is needed to rebuild a community and "telemedicine, tele-education and groundwater solutions" are all vital pieces of the puzzle that help kick-start life from scratch for these victims of crises.
"It's about creating resilience for these people so they can rebuild their lives at home." Making reference to a project SOS Children's Villages is currently involved with in Austria called 'Satida' Papp said he is looking forward to "applying the technology" in some of the 134 countries it works in.
kelly@khaleejtimes.com

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