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The days of feeling unsafe are over now

12-year-old Ndawona and her five siblings were left sleeping in a mud hut covered with dry grass. The poor condition of their shelter meant that it leaked every time it rained, forcing them to stand up in the middle of the nigh. Thanks to a local Health Committee trained by World Vision, the future is now looking brighter for the young family.

Water is life

For father-of-four Ali, fleeing the conflict in Syria was only the start of his families’ hardship. Reaching the relative safety of a refugee camp in Lebanon, it was the difficulty in obtaining safe water that was not only a daily struggle, but also a real health risk. But thanks to a World Vision ‘Water, Sanitation and Hygiene’ programme, the availability of clean water is helping to keep Ali’s family and the wider community healthy.

Finding Peace

Children have a way of finding their own peace and, almost every day for the last two years, brothers Phouch and Liev have found theirs on the football pitch. But no amount of football can change the fact that they live in circumstances that no children should have to endure. Two years since arriving at the UN protected camp in South Sudan, we find out how they’ve coped.

Freezing in the cold

Sitting in the middle of an empty field near the border-crossing between Serbia and Croatia, Rima, a Syrian refugee is in tears as she describes how she felt when her eight-year-old daughter Aya begged her to let her die. Brenda Yu hears her story...

Happiness

Salah is 12-years-old and lives in Lebanon with his family as a refugee. Back in Syria he went to school, the family had a car, and lived in a house. Now, traumatised by the conflict and sights he saw, the Child Friendly Space in his informal settlement is the only place he feels safe.

A dream of education

16-year-old Lima faced a difficult decision when her father fell ill; either go to school, or start working to support her family. Feeling like she should choose the latter, it wasn’t until a World Vision education project came to her area of Bangladesh, that she could once again pursue her dream of becoming an engineer.

Staying warm in Nepal

As winter descends on Nepal, World Vision was on hand to distribute winter and baby kits - containing warm clothes, blankets and hats, to young mothers feeling the ongoing effects of the earthquake recovery. In Sindupalchowk, one of the worst affected areas near Kathmandu, mothers with young children were grateful for the much-needed warm clothes and the reassurance they provide.

Most important New Year’s Resolutions

World Vision meets with Ibrahim, Isa & their 8-month-old baby Lubab. Recalling the events that drove them to flee Syria, Ibrahim and Isa discuss their journey to Serbia and their wish for baby Lubab to grow up free from fear.

Preparing for the worst

World Vision’s Bert Smit travels to Malawi to visit the Area Development Programme that has been supported by World Vision UK sponsors since 1997. Speaking with community members, many express concerns at the erratic rainfall due to El Nino, leaving them with crops that will not grow. Discussing solutions to the problem, such as drought-resistant seeds, Bert speaks with the community to see how they can better prepare themselves.

2016

Supporter Blogs from 2016

January

Supporter Blogs January 2016 | Read the stories, blogs and first hand accounts from written by World Vision UK Child Sponsors after visiting their sponsored child.

Too cold to get out of bed

With winter approaching, many of the families who escaped fighting in Iraq, now find themselves sheltering in unfinished buildings at the Syrian border. We met siblings Hareman and Manaa who are trying to make the best of a desperate situation by keeping warm and playing with the other children staying nearby.

The untold story

Melany Markham reflects on the difficulties faced by communicators working in South Sudan, when trying to tell the story of thousands of children facing a humanitarian catastrophe. From constraints on taking photographs, to tackling the huge distances between camps, the challenges are numerous but mask an important story that needs to be told.

One good thing

World Vision Communicator Melany Markham tells us the story of Nyahok – an eleven-year old girl, who currently lives in a camp in South Sudan. Unlike 85% of girls across the country, Nyahok goes to school and her education will set her apart in a country where only one in six women can read and write.

I almost lost my childhood in Somalia

14-year-old Fartun, began her life as a refugee in January 2009, when she was just eight years old. Six years on, she tells us about the fighting in Somalia that forced her family to flee to Kakuma refugee camp in neighbouring Kenya, and describes the transition to life as a refugee.

The life of a young refugee girl in Diffa

Martha looks like any other 17-year-old girl, but her life has been far from ordinary. Having fled her home in northern Nigeria, Martha found herself in a refugee camp in the Diffa region of Niger. Initially separated from her parents, it's taken a while for Martha to adjust to life in the camp. But with no school, no safe water points, and no immediate access to health facilities, the camp is unable to offer children like Martha the opportunities they had before...

Holding onto hope in a crisis

As a vegetable oil producer, life was very comfortable for 50-year-old Aisha from Damasak, Nigeria. Along with her husband, a general trader, they were able to comfortably take care of their 12 children.

December

Our blogs from December 2015.

Going the extra mile

Two years since Typhoon Haiyan came to the Philippines, response workers like Meldred have been working hard to restore normality to people’s lives. The typhoon destroyed homes and livelihoods, and for many people with disabilities, it has also left them feeling even more isolated. When Meldred met Joey, a young man struggling to lead an independent life despite his disability, she knew she could make a difference...

When all help appears lost

Zahra knows all about how devastating AIDs can be, having lost both parents to the disease. When she began to feel ill, she discovered she was also HIV positive. She describes how it feels to live with the disease, and how she’s thankful for the support she gets from her grandmother and World Vision.