The WASH Cluster identified Friday 26 February as a ‘Clean Up’ day for the Cluster members to join the Clean Up Activity currently undertaken by the Tonga Red Cross Society in the community of Vaini.
Civil Society Forum of Tonga (CSFT) as a member of the Cluster mobilized CSO groups and Volunteers to join the campaign and we are proud to report that we have contributed in a small way to eliminating Zika virus in Tonga.
The Civil Society Organisations that took part in the Clean Up Zika Campaign supports the response plan led by the Ministry of Health and the leading role played by the Tonga Red Cross Society (TRCS) in partnership with the Tonga Army but CSOs participation were specific focus on the implications of Zika in the lives of women and children.
We were out there helping Tonga Red Cross team to pick up the rubbish in the community of Vaini is to demonstrate that in our respective CSOs in our small ways demonstrate that we have the interest of women and children at heart.
Tonga Red Cross volunteers shared with our team that they are encouraged to have new people joining them and having extra help is always welcome.
CSFT team would like to take this opportunity to thank our volunteers who participated in the Clean Up on Friday 26 February 2016, building a nation starts with small steps. Special thanks to the Tonga Red Cross Society for their effort especially to their volunteers MALO ‘AUPITO.
We had the following groups involved:
- Caritas – helped coordinate the logistics with the Cluster secretariat
- Tonga National Youth Congress (TNYC)
- Women and Children Crisis Centre
- Tonga Red Cross Society (TRCS) – lead agency of the Clean Up Campaign
- Civil Society Forum of Tonga (CSFT) – Coordinating and mobilizing volunteers
