The calendar was prepared by the KARTA Center in connection with the publication of the book “Action Without Borders. Thirty Years of Polish Humanitarian Action”.
OCTOBER – Janina Ochojska talks about the tragedy of Bosnians in Sarajevo, besieged by Serbs. After the broadcast, people willing to help organize the convoy come forward.
NOVEMBER – In Warsaw, a collection of gifts for the residents of Sarajevo from private individuals and companies is underway. The Polish EquiLibre Foundation collects food, clothing, tents and blankets
DECEMBER – The Warsaw branch of the Polish EquiLibre Foundation is established. EquiLibre gets its first place at Miodowa Street from the Mayor of Warsaw, Stanisław Wyganowski.
DECEMBER 26 – The EquiLibre Foundation sends the first convoy from Poland to besieged Sarajevo. Twelve trucks are on the Peace Convoy, carrying, among other things, food, medicines, clothes and blankets. A dozen or so journalists take part in it.
FEBRUARY 24 – The EquiLibre Foundation sends four trucks with blankets, medicines, and food to Sarajevo. On the way back, the convoy is fired upon. A French woman, Chantal Godinot, is killed, and two Polish drivers are injured.
MARCH/APRIL – The EquiLibre Foundation sends two more convoys to the Balkans. Medical and food aid is going to Belgrade and Pristina.
MAY 14 – Janina Ochojska receives the Medal of St. George, an award granted by the readers and the environment of Tygodnik Powszechny “for struggling with evil and stubbornly building good in social life to people who show special sensitivity to poverty, harm, injustice – and express this sensitivity in deeds”.
JULY 31 – As part of the international aid campaign “Mir Sada” (“Peace Now”), the EquiLibre Foundation sends a convoy of 20 trucks to Sarajevo, carrying 400 tons of food, medicine and cleaning products. The action is publicized in the media, and many well-known people from the world of media and politics take part in the convoy itself.
SEPTEMBER – The EquiLibre Foundation sends convoys with medical aid to clinics and clinics in Belgrade and Kosovo.
OCTOBER 1 – Thanks to UNHCR grants, EquiLibre creates a Refugee Assistance Center in Warsaw. It will provide social, medical and legal assistance, as well as aid in getting a job, housing or education.
NOVEMBER–DECEMBER – The EquiLibre Foundation conducts an educational campaign in Warsaw schools, teaching children that even the smallest aid is important.
DECEMBER 2 – Janina Ochojska is elected Woman of Europe 1993 by representatives of the European Union and journalists.
JANUARY 23 – A convoy carrying 62 tons of medicines, food and cleaning products leaves for Belgrade and Sarajevo. This is the first convoy in four months to enter the besieged city.
MARCH–APRIL – Two more convoys with medical aid arrive in the Balkans. Among the recipients of aid are both Serbs and Bosnians.
JUNE 1 – The EquiLibre Foundation and the “Nasz Dom” Association co-organize the Children’s Parliament in the Polish Parliament. Children pass an appeal for peace in the countries of the former Yugoslavia.
JUNE 5 – The first convoy with the logo of the Polish Humanitarian Action leaves for Sarajevo. Its participants give the victims of the war, among other things, over 5000 postcards with the Dove of Peace signed by Polish children.
AUGUST 17 – The reconnaissance convoy reaches Kazakhstan and the Poles living there. Its participants are establishing contacts that are to help in future humanitarian actions.
SEPTEMBER 4 – Departure of the convoy with medical aid to hospitals in Kokchetava and Karaganda in Kazakhstan.
OCTOBER 23 – A convoy under the banner of the Polish Humanitarian Action sets off with the Peace Parcels prepared by scouts to Sarajevo. On the way back, it is fired upon. The car in which Janina Ochojska and Tomasz Wilk are driving falls into the abyss. After a short stay in the hospital, they both return to the convoy.
DECEMBER 20 – Over 2000 Christmas parcels arrive by air to Poles in Kazakhstan.
DECEMBER 28 – The Foundation appeals to Poles to sign the Sarajevo Declaration of the Free and United City.
JANUARY 18 – Decision is made to separate from the EquiLibre Foundation (whose Polish branch still operates in Krakow) and to establish the Polish Humanitarian Action Foundation.
FEBRUARY 14 – The first convoy leaves for Chechnya. 35 tons of medicines, dressings, food and nutrition for children in the war-torn country were delivered to the hospital in Shala.
MARCH 28 – A convoy of baby food and cleaning products sets off for Sarajevo, which is still under siege.
JUNE 2 – Polish Humanitarian Action sends a convoy with medicines, school supplies and books for Poles in Kazakhstan.
SEPTEMBER–OCTOBER – Two convoys with medical aid and baby nutrition arrive in Bosnia and Serbia.
DECEMBER – PAH, in cooperation with the local Association for Helping Children in the Bieszczady Mountains, launches a campaign to feed students in the Bieszczady Mountains. Over 3000 children are aided.
DECEMBER – PAH organizes the First Pilgrimage of Poles from Kazakhstan to Polish. Polish families host over eighty seniors, for some it is the first visit to their homeland after the deportations in the 1930s. Over 1700 Christmas packages are sent to Polish families in Kazakhstan.
FEBRUARY–APRIL – Two convoys with medicines, food and children’s products arrive in war-torn Bosnia.
JUNE 22 – The second stage of the program to aid children in the Bieszczady Mountains begins. Local schools are to become shelters during the holidays, the earnings of which will be used for meals for the poorest.
AUGUST – Convoys set off to Bosnia and Kazakhstan. The first one carries food and medicines. Kazakhstan receives medical equipment for hospitals and aid for schools and orphanages.
DECEMBER 17 – Once again, PAH delivers over 2000 Christmas parcels to Polish families in Kazakhstan by air. On the way back, it takes participants of the Second Pilgrimage of Poles from Kazakhstan.
FEBRUARY–MARCH – Janina Ochojska and Aleksandra Rezunow go on a reconnaissance mission to Polish families in Lithuania. After their return, PAH organizes a fundraiser, thanks to which it can feed almost five hundred children in this country.
FEBRUARY–APRIL – Two convoys with food, medicine and clothing leave for Sarajevo. The aid is distributed among the Muslim, Serbian and Croatian populations, and also goes to Polish families living in Bosnia.
MAY – PAH establishes the Sarajevo School Reconstruction Committee headed by Tadeusz Mazowiecki. After choosing a school, the collection of funds from Polish companies begins. After the flood in 1997 in Poland, due to protests of many people, PAH is forced to stop collecting money for the reconstruction of the school in Sarajevo. It was rebuilt in 2000 by the Americans.
JULY 7 – PAH sends food and blankets to the Kłodzko flood victims. The first stage of the Flood Victims Assistance Program begins.
JULY–AUGUST – PAH provides flood victims with over 900 tons of donations in the form of mattresses, food, drinking water, medicines and cleaning products, among others. PAH also organizes summer camps for almost seven hundred children from flooded towns.
AUGUST 30 – The second stage of support for flood victims begins, consisting in helping to renovate and equip the buildings of non-governmental institutions and private houses.
DECEMBER – Once again, PAH sends Christmas parcels and organizes a stay in the homeland for the Polish community from Kazakhstan
As part of the continuation of last year’s campaign to aid flood victims, PAH provides comprehensive assistance to 12 public schools and educational centers in flooded areas.
APRIL – PAH organizes a fundraiser for the “Pajacyk” campaign, aimed at feeding children in poor regions of Polish.
MAY 15 – A Home for Single Mothers and a Home for the Homeless, renovated after the flood with PAH funds, are opened in Małopolska. The Foundation provides equipment for the apartments of flood victims, including in Laskowa, for the amount of over 100.000 PLN.
MAY 20 – PAH sends a truck with computer equipment to schools in Lithuanian Šalčininkai and Eišiškės.
JUNE 20 – A convoy with medicines, tents and food sets off to the victims of the earthquake in Afghanistan. The trucks reach Dushanbe in Tajikistan, from where Red Cross helicopters take aid to the affected areas.
SEPTEMBER – As part of the “Pajacyk” campaign, PAH begins to finance lunches in selected schools in north-eastern Poland. During the fundraiser, which has been ongoing since April, over 400.000 PLN was collected from companies and individuals
SEPTEMBER 29 – The annual convoy with gifts for the Polish community in Kazakhstan leaves.
NOVEMBER 25/27 – PAH sends two trucks with food, baby products, medicines and dressings to the victims of the flood in the Ukrainian Transcarpathia.
DECEMBER 17 – Christmas parcels with food, clothing and toys are once again delivered by air toish diaspora organizations in Kazakhstan. On the way back, the plane takes participants of the 4th Pilgrimage of Poles from Kazakhstan.
MARCH – PAH publishes the first issue of the youth magazine “Pomagamy!”.
MARCH 8, JUNE 10, JULY 19, DECEMBER 7 – Convoys with computer equipment, books and equipment for schools leave for Lithuania.
APRIL 14/24, JUNE 9, JULY 2 – PAH sends four convoys to Albania as part of the operation “Rainbow” of the European Community. Almost 250 tons of vitamins, baby food, cleaning products and food are sent to refugee camps. Some of the gifts come from the Great Orchestra of Christmas Charity Foundation.
JULY 26 – AUGUST 3 – Janina Ochojska and Kaja Wiślińska from PAH take part in a reconnaissance mission of Polish NGOs in Serbia and Kosovo. The mission aims to prepare a permanent Aid Programme for the Balkans, which in the first phase will focus on providing humanitarian aid and rebuilding selected schools and homes, and in the second phase will provide psychological assistance, classes for children and young people, and support the creation of local government structures.
AUGUST 25 – PAH sends two trucks with food, dressings and clothes to the victims of the earthquake in Turkey
AUGUST 28 – PAH starts collecting school supplies as part of the “Hope Action”. The collected donations go to schools in the Suwałki region, Lithuania and Kazakhstan and to refugee camps in Serbia.
SEPTEMBER – PAH’s Krakow office launches a programme to aid a Romanian orphanage and shelter for women run by the “Pro Vita” Foundation.
NOVEMBER 16 – A convoy of PAH with clothes, footwear and hygiene products arrives at Serbian refugees from Kosovo in Belgrade.
DECEMBER 6 – PAH sends a convoy with baby food, food and hygiene products to refugees who have returned to stabilized Kosovo. The gifts are received by the Mother Teresa Association and the Yugoslav Red Cross.
DECEMBER 19 – The Fifth Pilgrimage of Poles from Kazakhstan begins.
DECEMBER – The first permanent PAH mission is established in Kosovo. The mission includes the municipalities of Kacanik and Strpce, inhabited by Kosovo and Serbian communities.
JANUARY 14 and APRIL 6 – PAH sends convoys with baby food and windows donated by the Urzędowski company to Kosovo to support the reconstruction of houses and school buildings.
JANUARY 1, JULY 7 and DECEMBER 5 – Convoys with food, cleaning products and medicine set off to the victims of the conflict in Chechnya and Ingushetia.
FEBRUARY 2, MAY 15 and JULY 7 – PAH sends convoys with donations to the orphanage in Valea Plopului, Romania.
APRIL – PAH’s permanent mission begins its operations in Nazran (Ingushetia) and Grozny (Chechnya).
APRIL 5 – A convoy with computer equipment leaves for a Bosnian school in Sarajevo. The school is rebuilt in the same year by the Americans.
APRIL 26 – PAH sends gifts to Hungarian flood victims on a government plane lent to them.
MAY 30, JULY 10 and NOVEMBER 19 – PAH sends convoys with food, clothing and household appliances to Lithuania.
JUNE 9 – A convoy with food, cleaning products and bedding leaves for the victims of the flood in Romania.
OCTOBER 3 – A convoy with gifts for the Polish diaspora leaves for Kazakhstan.
OCTOBER 26 – In Grozny, PAH is the first and only organization to provide clean drinking water thanks to the installation of a new water filter. Every day, it supplies 120.000L of water to 41 tanks in 20 hospitals, 6 schools and 14 points for the public.
DECEMBER 19 – Participants of the VI Pilgrimage of Poles from Kazakhstan arrive in Polish. This is the last such trip. In connection with the entry into force of the law on repatriation, PAH intends to aid Poles from the East in a different way.
JANUARY 30 – PAH appeals for aid for the victims of the earthquake in India. Over 100.000 PLN were collected for the reconstruction of the water supply system in Jamnagar.
FEBRUARY 19 – The Polish Hunger Side is established. Thanks to the daily visits of Internet users in 2001, over 200.000 PLN were collected for the “Pajacyk” campaign.
MARCH 21 – PAH joins the convoy for the victims of the flood in Ukraine organized by the Fire Brigade. In Uzhhorod, the distribution of cleaning products, blankets and water containers is handled by the local Group of the Humanitarian Commission of the Transcarpathian Region.
APRIL – PAH completes the first stage of the “Stoves for Grozny” programme. Chechen schools, hospitals and families have been equipped with more than 2000 stoves.
APRIL – PAH supports the renovation of houses of flood victims in Siberia.
JULY – PAH publishes a Polish-Russian guide for repatriates from the countries of the former USSR.
JULY 12 – PAH begins to aid Polish flood victims by sending a transport to the Single Mother’s Home in Słupsk.
NOVEMBER – As part of the water and sanitation programme in Grozny, PAH distributes water to about 300 tanks in schools, hospitals and districts, collects garbage, builds toilets and incinerators at hospitals, and provides hygiene education.
NOVEMBER 18 – PAH launches the “One PLN for children from Afghanistan” campaign in Polish schools. In this way, PAH wants to show that even the smallest gestures count in helping. By the end of the year, over 200.000 PLN had been collected in almost 1600 schools.
JANUARY 21 – The Toruń branch of PAH opens the Social Information Office, where those in need can apply for legal assistance.
APRIL – PAH finalizes a programme of assistance for the victims of the Polish flood in 2001. As a result of the campaign carried out since 2001 with “Gazeta Wyborcza”, 26 houses for families with children were built and 11 flats were bought for the elderly, whose houses were completely destroyed.
JUNE – PAH establishes a permanent mission in Kabul. Its aim is to rebuild and equip the local music and art school.
AUGUST–SEPTEMBER – PAH sends cleaning accessories and hepatitis A vaccines to Czech flood victims.
SEPTEMBER 11 – Janina Ochojska speaks at the United Nations in New York. It tells the story of the reconstruction of post-conflict countries on the example of PAH’s activities in Kosovo, Chechnya and Afghanistan and the accompanying 10 commandments of humanitarian aid, which become guidelines for PAH’s operation.
PAH is developing the “Pajacyk” programme for feeding children. In the school year 2002/2003, free meals are provided to students from 46 schools in 9 provinces. By the end of 2002, over 85000 meals were co-financed
MARCH 24 – PAH, with the participation of President Aleksander Kwaśniewski, opens a music and art school in Kabul, rebuilt thanks to the “One PLN for Children from Afghanistan” campaign.
APRIL – PAH launches the “Humanitarian School” programme, which is to award institutions that conduct classes related to the fight against discrimination, respect for dignity and tolerance. 100 schools from all over Polish are competing for the title.
JULY – A transport with 10 000 books and educational CDs, almost 2000 notebooks and over a 1000 school bags leaves for Lithuanian schools.
JULY 15 – PAH establishes a permanent mission in Iraq in the town of Al-Hilla. Its aim is to rebuild schools and water and sanitary systems.
SEPTEMBER 13 – Together with the German partner organization Inwent, PAH launched the GLeN (Global Learning Network) project, which aims to send volunteers from Europe to work in the countries of the Global South – to raise awareness of the problems of these countries and aid NGOs there.
OCTOBER 2 – Janina Ochojska is awarded the French Order of the Legion of Honour for her humanitarian aid and close ties to France.
OCTOBER – PAH signs a Partnership Framework Agreement with the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid Office (ECHO). The Foundation is invited to cooperate with ECHO as the only Polish non-governmental organization. Thanks to this cooperation, PAH is able to finance humanitarian operations carried out outside the EU.
DECEMBER 30 – PAH donates donations by air to the victims of the earthquake in Bam, Iran. 2000 people are reached, among other things, by stoves, clothing and dressings.
JANUARY 25 – PAH establishes its first temporary mission in Bam, which was destroyed by the earthquake. For over a month, PAH has been building a hundred toilets, eight showers and, together with the Red Crescent, distributing aid packages to 2000 families.
APRIL – PAH is forced to evacuate its staff for the first time for safety reasons. The mission in Iraq, which was building primary schools, youth centers and water treatment plants, among others, on the spot, is interrupted. Further work is being continued by the local coordinator.
MAY 22 – PAH’s second temporary mission in Bam begins. For a month, money was collected to cover the costs of building the orphanage.
JUNE – PAH’s permanent mission in Kabul begins the reconstruction of the ruins of a secondary agricultural vocational school. Thanks to the economy of funds, the library building was also rebuilt, outdoor toilets were built, and the school was equipped with furniture.
SEPTEMBER – After the terrorist attack on the school in Beslan, PAH provides medical and psychological care to the victims.
NOVEMBER–DECEMBER – In cooperation with the local Catholic Mission in the Atok Province in Cameroon, PAH creates a Formation and Vocational Center to educate young people, and also supports the Dimako Health Center with medicines.
DECEMBER 28 – PAH sends tents and medical equipment to the Zam-Zam camp in Sudan’s Darfur. Aid goes to a camp for 20.000 victims of the conflict between the Arab North and the Christian South.
DECEMBER 30 – PAH sends a transport with medicines, medical supplies and water disinfectant tablets to the victims of the tsunami in Sri Lanka
JANUARY – PAH establishes a permanent mission in Sri Lanka and begins, among other things, the reconstruction of schools, deep wells and water treatment plants.
MARCH–APRIL – PAH organizes a reconnaissance trip to North Korea. The Foundation delivers medicines to a hospital in Hamhung.
SEPTEMBER – PAH begins aiding the victims of Hurricane Katrina by organizing a public fundraiser. The computer lab of St. Bernard Parish School in New Louisiana is equipped.
AUGUST – PAH begins the reconstruction of a school in Kapisa province in Afghanistan. It also deals with the reconstruction of the water and sewage system in another facility and the organization of programs and music and art classes for children and young people in orphanages.
DECEMBER – By the end of the year, 125 schools from all provinces in Poland are supported under the “Pajacyk” programme (run by PAH since 1998). PAH and donors fund 442 211 hot meals
FEBRUARY – PAH launches a project to aid the residents of the Union Council Butail village in Pakistan, whose water intakes and installations were destroyed as a result of a powerful earthquake in October last year. PAH provides the villagers with access to safe sources of drinking water.
MAY – PAH is supplying victims of the earthquake on the Indonesian island of Java with medical supplies and tools to rebuild their homes. It also organizes training in the field of reconstruction.
MAY – Janina Ochojska receives the Father Józef Tischner Znak and Hestia Award. From its justification: “Her impressive and increasingly large-scale activity in the Polish Humanitarian Action constantly reminds Poles of the great power of the ideal of solidarity.”
JUNE – PAH builds two bazaars in Al Hilli, Iraq. Thanks to commercial facilities, local manufacturers and producers can sell their goods and 50.000 people can safely buy them.
AUGUST 13 – PAH is the only foreign humanitarian organization to reach the bombed northern Israel (Kiryat Shemona, Shemoli, Nahariyya and Akko), where it carries out a reconnaissance mission and delivers kitchen and hygiene kits to almost three hundred families.
AUGUST – PAH aids victims during the Israeli-Lebanese conflict. Lebanese internal refugees from the southern areas receive kitchen, hygiene and children’s kits.
SEPTEMBER – PAH conducts projects to expand water infrastructure in the Palestinian Authority, including the construction of rainwater tanks and water filtration systems in three schools in the Bethlehem district.
NOVEMBER – PAH, in cooperation with the local organization Panykou Agency for Relief and Development, launches a well drilling program in Sudan (since 2011 – in South Sudan).
DECEMBER – PAH rebuilds water supply networks damaged during the Israeli-Lebanese conflict in villages in southern Lebanon, and expands the water supply network in the Palestinian Authority in the city of Idhna.
DECEMBER – 5000 residents of the village of Attab in the Iraqi province of Babil gain permanent access to drinking water thanks to a water treatment plant built by PAH.
DECEMBER – PAH hands over to local organizations in Grozny the implemented systems of water production and distribution, sewage and garbage disposal.
DECEMBER – PAH launches a long-term project in Sri Lanka in cooperation with the local organization Center for East Lanka Social Services aimed at the professional activation of widows and women living alone.
FEBRUARY – PAH implements, among other things, an agricultural project in Sudan. For half a year, the inhabitants of three villages who maintain their own households learn how to grow plants effectively. There are also stalls where women can sell surplus vegetables.
PAH undertakes many activities related to water projects in Sudan, including the construction of 11 deep wells in the districts of Kolnyang and Makuach, thus providing drinking water for thousands of people.
JUNE – In West Darfur, in cooperation with the local Sudan Social Development Organization, PAH builds 20 deep wells, and in Poland, together with “Gazeta Wyborcza”, it conducts the “Save Darfur” campaign, the funds from which it allocates funds to the construction of further water intakes. 20.000 people gain access to drinking water.
NOVEMBER – PAH completes its permanent mission in Sri Lanka. For almost four years, she rebuilt five schools and built 40 wells there.
NOVEMBER–DECEMBER – PAH joins in aid activities for the victims of cyclone Sidr in Bangladesh, despite the low interest in the tragedy in Poland. She creates a blog about the situation in this country and organizes lessons about it in Polish schools.
PAH is carrying out many projects related to access to safe water sources in the West Bank, including the expansion and construction of sewage systems and water supply systems in refugee camps and homes.
PAH is developing the “Pajacyk” programme in Polish schools. In total, about 628.000 wholesome meals are financed.
MAY 19 – PAH launches a fundraiser for the inhabitants of Myanmar affected by cyclone Nargis. Over 150.000 PLN were collected.
AUGUST – PAH begins aiding victims of hostilities in Georgia. Food and fuel go to 2500 people. It also helps to repair damaged homes.
As part of humanitarian education in Polish schools, in 2008 PAH conducted 32 training courses for teachers and 200 classes for children and young people. More than 4000 students from 52 schools take part in the “Global School” and “Humanitarian School” projects.
In Afghanistan, PAH continues to support education: it equips schools and universities with computer equipment, and organizes computer and English courses for students, teachers and staff.
MARCH 4 – As a result of a political decision by the President of Sudan, PAH is forced to suspend its activities in the province of Darfur. Thanks to the Foundation’s aid, thousands of people have gained access to water. The mission continues in the southern part of the country.
In Sudan, in the counties of Uror and Bor, PAH distributes, among other things, seeds and tools as well as fruit trees among families and returning refugees.
PAH continues water and sanitation activities in the Palestinian Authority, including in the town of Khanyounis in the Gaza Strip, laying 1030 meters of sewer pipes, building a network that is to provide access to water for 12.000 people.
PAH is rebuilding 35 wells in Myanmar, building 6 new ones, and installing 350 filters in schools and public buildings. It is also renovating three schools, among others.
PAH conducts information and educational campaigns in Poland, bringing closer the perspective of the inhabitants of Sudan (since 2011 – South Sudan), which translates into growing social awareness. The first well is being built there, entirely financed by one donor.
JANUARY – PAH sends aid to earthquake-ravaged Haiti. Hygiene kits go to a 1000 people. As part of its long-term assistance, PAH organizes, among other things, childcare centers in Haiti, conducting classes and psychological support for the youngest.
MAY–AUGUST – Floods in southern Poland affect more than 260.000 people and damage 18.000 buildings. PAH is aiding by sending 22 transports with humanitarian aid. The Foundation supports hundreds of families in the country by donating basic home furnishings, school starter kits, tools, as well as organizing and financing renovations.
SEPTEMBER 28 – PAH and Janina Ochojska receive the Lech Wałęsa Award for their efforts to promote understanding and solidarity between nations and freedom.
OCTOBER 14 – Janina Ochojska presents PAH’s new campaign “A World Without Hunger”, which aims to fight hunger and malnutrition of children in Sudan, Kenya, Somalia and Eritrea.
PAH continues its activities in the Palestinian Authority, including in the cities of Khanyounis and Jabalia, where 2756 meters of sewage network were built in 2010. Residents have gained access to clean, uncontaminated drinking water, thanks to which the incidence of digestive diseases has decreased.
MARCH – PAH launches a fundraiser to aid Japan affected by the tsunami. PAH is donating PLN 1.200.000 to rebuild a destroyed kindergarten in the city of Kesenuma in Miyagi Prefecture.
MARCH – PAH aids refugees from the civil war in Libya on the Libyan-Egyptian border, providing food, medicine and sanitary products.
APRIL 19 – The Polish Embassy in Pyongyang, North Korea, buys and donates medical equipment to the hospital in Hamhung from the funds raised by PAH.
JUNE 4 – Janina Ochojska is awarded the Commander’s Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta Polish by President Bronisław Komorowski.
JULY–AUGUST – Due to the famine in the Horn of Africa, PAH starts a collection and sends a reconnaissance mission to Somalia.
SEPTEMBER – PAH establishes a permanent mission in Puntland in the north-eastern part of Somalia, dealing with water and sanitation projects to prevent drought and famine.
For the second year, the “Pajacyk” program aids children not only in Poland, but also around the world as part of the “World without hunger” campaign. Since 1998, PAH and donors have financed more than 10.000.000 meals as part of the feeding campaign.
FEBRUARY 13 – Israeli troops raze the West Bank village of Rahawa. A water cistern restored by PAH is destroyed. Eighty people are deprived of access to water.
MARCH – PAH supports refugees from the Syrian civil war in Lebanon. Food packages go to three hundred families.
SEPTEMBER – PAH creates a water distribution system for 2500 people in the village of Ceel Madoobe in Puntland.
PAH establishes an Immediate Response Team in Sudan. It is made up of specialists ready to immediately go to the crisis area. They distribute water purification tablets, basic articles related to drinking water and food security, and unclog water intakes. The places and the way of support are dictated by the current situation of those in need.
PAH serves about 419.800 meals as part of the “Pajacyk” programme, providing assistance to 3429 children in schools and educational institutions throughout Poland. With the funds raised as part of the campaign, PAH also organizes feeding for 11.000 children, pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers in two clinics in Mogadishu in Somalia, and in South Sudan it creates a farm to develop for the residents to grow food on their own.
MARCH – PAH reaches out with aid to the victims of the civil war in Syria, who can only count on external aid. In response to the huge needs, the Foundation is starting to provide ongoing support in the districts of Idlib and Hama by distributing food, drinking water, hygiene products, medicines and blankets. It also supplies flour to bakeries.
NOVEMBER 8 – Typhoon Haiyan hits the Philippines. PAH is rebuilding houses and a school on the island of Bantayan. Together with the local university and engineers, their construction is based on traditional materials and construction methods.
DECEMBER – In response to the crisis in the world’s youngest country, South Sudan, PAH begins to provide immediate assistance by building sanitary facilities, providing access to water, food, and distributing hygiene products and water purification products. PAH is one of only a few organizations which, in the face of high danger and unstable internal situation, decides to be present in this country.
In 2013, PAH expanded its activities in Syria to include the reconstruction of water pumping stations and water supply networks, and the creation of a mobile clinic providing medical care.
In the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, PAH distributes 50 water tanks and renovates toilets in schools.
PAH is starting to aid in eastern Ukraine. The Foundation distributes, among other things, food, cleaning products and warm clothing for internally displaced people as a result of the conflict caused by the Kremlin.
MAY 13 – PAH supports flood victims in Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina in the reconstruction of houses and renovation of two schools.
JULY – Due to the escalation of the internal conflict, PAH evacuates from Libya to Tunisia.
SEPTEMBER – In the school year 2014/15, the “Pajacyk” programme expands the formula of action to include the Pajacyk Aid Network, i.e. close cooperation with local organizations that know best the situation of children from the region, and are often more involved in changing the social situation than schools.
In the Garoowe and Mogadishu camps in Somalia, PAH is building water intakes, toilets and a garbage storage station.
FEBRUARY – PAH establishes a permanent mission in Kramatorsk, Ukraine. The Foundation aids internal refugees in the war-torn eastern part of the country. It also tries to reach people who have remained in the areas occupied by pro-Russian separatists because they are unable to move or did not want to leave their homes.
PAH cooperates with canteens in Ukraine, jointly running a feeding programme for the elderly, lonely and sick.
MAY–JUNE – PAH aids Nepalese people affected by the earthquake. It provides, among other things, kits for building temporary shelters, food and tablets for water purification.
PAH in Belgrade, in camps for refugees from Syria, builds portable toilets, containers in which medical stations are created, a kitchen and space for breastfeeding mothers.
In Somalia, PAH operates mainly in camps for internally displaced persons, helping to increase access to water and sanitation. Among other things, it builds the so-called water kiosks, i.e. places that allow several people to use the water intake.
Operating in the water and sanitation (WASH) sector, PAH tests water quality – in 2015 alone, in South Sudan, it tested the chemical status of 54 water sources and conducted training for local hygiene promoters
In Syria, where a large part of the water infrastructure has been destroyed as a result of military operations, PAH rebuilds water supply networks and sewage systems, as well as renovates bathrooms and water tanks in schools.
PAH donates flour and yeast to bakeries in the Idlib province in Syria, thanks to which they can maintain low, stable bread prices and develop entrepreneurship. In total, over 3 thousand tons of flour were donated and over 5.000.000 loaves of bread were baked.
In Ukraine, PAH provides hot meals, packages with hygiene products and winter packages to internally displaced persons. It creates kindergartens and day-care centers for children, and provides financial support to single mothers.
APRIL – Marta Kaszubska, head of PAH’s mission in the Gaza Strip, is chosen by the jury of “Wysokie Obcasy” as the Superhero of 2015.
MAY–JUNE – PAH rebuilds and equips six schools in mountainous, hard-to-reach towns in Nepal.
NOVEMBER – PAH returns to Iraq, providing immediate aid to the victims of armed fighting in Mosul. Eight hundred families receive water, food and hygiene products.
PAH continues its activities in Somalia, where in 2016 it focuses primarily on access to water and decent sanitation, including the construction of 700 toilets, the reconstruction of 20 wells and the training of 50 people operating water intakes.
DECEMBER PAH aids people evacuated from pacified Aleppo by providing them with food, water, hygiene products and sanitary facilities. The fundraiser manages to collect PLN 4000000 to equip the refugee camp.
FEBRUARY – Famine is declared in South Sudan, where PAH has been operating since 2006. PAH’s activities include the distribution of shelters for internally displaced persons and food security. It continues long-term water and sanitation projects.
Somalia becomes the first country in which PAH introduces electronic money transfers. The people in need of the most aid receive financial aid from PAH via mobile phones, intended for a self-selected purpose that will help them become independent.
For the first time, PAH is launching a feeding programme during the summer holidays as part of the “Pajacyk” programme, addressed to community centers, educational centers, clubs and socio-therapeutic centers. “Pajacyk” has been operating continuously since 1998, only in the second semester of the 2016/17 school year, 153.568 meals were served under the program.
JULY – PAH appoints the Polish Immediate Aid Team in Kurdistan. The team delivers more than 6000 parcels to internally displaced persons and the most vulnerable local communities.
In Turkey, PAH provides daily transport to schools for over two hundred students from Syria and Turkey and provides financial assistance to participants of vocational courses.
PAH is opening two additional information and integration centers with mobile teams in Ukraine. They provide support to internally displaced people, also close to the front line, in the form of psychological, social, legal and professional consultations.
PAH becomes a nationwide co-coordinator of the Water and Sanitation Assistance (WASH) programme in Somalia. Among other things, PAH drills and repairs wells, builds water intake points, delivers water by barrel trucks, and trains water pump mechanics.
APRIL – PAH for the first time implements activities to reduce the risk of natural disasters, increasing the awareness of Kenyans on how to effectively counteract negative climate change at the level of the local community and public administration. It also aids to provide residents with access to water and supports the development of entrepreneurship.
AUGUST 5 – PAH is the first aid organization from Poland to provide parcels with food and basic necessities to refugees of the Muslim Rohingya ethnic group in a camp in Bangladesh.
PAH continues to provide assistance in Syria by implementing the largest food aid programme in its history. Every month, it delivers food parcels to 15.000 Syrian families. It also continues, among other things, numerous water and sanitation projects.
PAH is active in South Sudan, reaching over 500.000 people with its aid. It deals with, among others, water and sanitation, food, shelter, education and support for victims of sexual violence.
DECEMBER PAH conducts a reconnaissance mission among Yemeni refugees in Djibouti, a country with an open-door policy for refugees from Yemen
FEBRUARY – PAH expands its programme to reduce the risk of natural disasters in Kenya by increasing the number of participants and building sand dams in cooperation with its local partner, the Africa Sand Dam Foundation.
JUNE – PAH establishes a permanent mission in Yemen. It provides access to safe water, builds sanitary facilities and conducts hygiene campaigns.
JULY – PAH provides immediate assistance to refugees from Venezuela in Colombia. Venezuelans point to the lack of health care and access to food as the main reason for fleeing.
OCTOBER 3-4 – PAH organizes the Global Education Games Festival in Toruń. Educators learn how to use games to explain global interdependencies.
OCTOBER PAH, in cooperation with the Polish Medical Mission, aids refugees from Rojava in Kurdistan, which is under attack.
In north-western Syria, PAH is finalizing a programme focused on the water and sanitation sector and educational sessions on hygiene with limited water resources.
PAH aids internally displaced persons in the Idlib province in Syria by expanding and equipping the refugee center and delivering meals there.
APRIL – Through local partners, PAH sets up handwashing points and delivers hygiene products in the Moria refugee camp on Lesbos.
PAH educates refugees in Iraq about protection against COVID-19 infection.
PAH supports six clinics in Yemen in the field of protection against COVID-19 infection, equips them, conducts training on infection control and provides financial support for the team. It also launches mobile medical clinics and rebuilds local clinics.
AUGUST 4 – After the explosion in Beirut, PAH supports more than sixty families in meeting their basic needs and in rebuilding their houses and flats.
NOVEMBER – PAH opens a training center for young people in Beirut.
PAH has been aiding in Ukraine since 2014 – in 2020 it focuses on providing psychosocial support to the local population and supporting institutions, including individual and group psychosocial sessions and organizing self-help groups.
In 2020, PAH in South Sudan reaches 233777 people with aid, carrying out activities in many regions in the field of access to water, food, education, shelter and care. Among other things, it renovates and builds toilets and handwashing points, thus providing girls with access to running water and the opportunity to participate in lessons also during menstruation.
PAH continues to support agricultural cooperatives and build schools in Kenya, engaging in counteracting the effects of climate change by building sand dams. There, it runs a pilot program of financial assistance using blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies, transferring cryptocurrency to people involved in the construction of cryptocurrency to their virtual wallets.
AUGUST – PAH conducts a fundraiser for the residents of Haitian Petit-Trou-de-Nippes, destroyed by the earthquake. It provides financial assistance to families and, among other things, psychological support, especially for women and girls.
OCTOBER – PAH aids refugees on the Polish-Belarusian border. It delivers food, clothes, aid packages at the base in the Michałoowo municipality and organizes patrols in the forests that hang the packages. The Foundation provides financial support to people staying in centers for foreigners.
In Iraq, in the Nineveh province, PAH supplies and tests water in four camps for internally displaced persons. It also deals with, among other things, garbage collection and repair of water and sanitary infrastructure.
PAH is opening a new chapter of the “Pajacyk” programme. “Pajacyk psychosocial help” is a psychosocial support program for children and adolescents in crisis.
FEBRUARY 23 – After the escalation of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, PAH begins to provide assistance at refugee reception points on the Polish-Ukrainian border and sends transports with food and hygiene products to those in need in Ukraine.
JUNE – In South Sudan, in Duk, Jonglei state, PAH conducts post-flood intervention activities. These include, among other things, the repair of flooded wells, the construction of latrines, and training in hygiene and for local pump mechanics.
JULY 14 – PAH installs solar panels in Kenya for schools and agricultural cooperatives.
JULY – PAH, in cooperation with local organizations, counteracts hunger in Madagascar by building wells, planting trees and installing energy-efficient stoves.
SEPTEMBER – PAH renovates and insulates houses in Ukraine destroyed by war. It plans to renovate a total of 50 buildings.
In Ma’rib, Yemen, PAH is running a multi-sectoral aid project for over 16.000 people. Among other things, it manages four camps for internally displaced persons, is involved in activities in the health sector and supplies medicines.
DECEMBER Polish Humanitarian Action celebrates its 30th anniversary.