CHILDREN PARTICIPATING IN MANAGING RISKS AT PETAPA COMMUNITY

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CHILDREN PARTICIPATING IN MANAGING RISKS AT
PETAPA COMMUNITY

• EL CARRIZAL, CHALATENANGO,
• AUGUST 2006

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What is the experience about

• Formación y funcionamiento de un Comité de
  Emergencia en Petapa, municipio El Carrizal,
  departamento de Chalatenango.
• Conformado por niños, niñas, jóvenes y algunas
  personas adultas, con el propósito es la
  prevención y atención de emergencias.
• Es un espacio de interacción de la población
  infantil y adolescente con la adulta, que
  permite, que niños y niñas aprendan de las
  experiencias de las personas adultas, y que la
  generación adulta se actualice con ideas
  novedosas y creativas de la niñez y adolescencia.
• Conformado por 6 brigadas Evacuación, Primeros
  Auxilios, Seguridad, Medio Ambiente e
  Intervención en Crisis (psico social)
• Participan 10 niños, 15 niñas y 4 personas
  adultas.
• Se cuenta con un Plan de Prevención y Mitigación
  de Desastres, registrados ante las autoridades
  del gobierno nacional encargadas de la atención
  en caso de emergencia.

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Basic Characteristics of Petapa

• Located at 95 kilometers from San Salvador, at
  the border zone with Honduras.
• Characterized by its high risk situation due to
  droughts, forest fires and landslides.
• It has 790 inhabitants 345 male and 445 female,
  grouped in 200 families.
• Economic activity Livelihood agriculture (corn
  and bean)
• With access to services like energy, water and
  phone.
• It has a school that attends to ninth grade, with
  260 studentes, 120 boys and 140 girls.
• The maximum authority in the place is the
  Association for Community Development (ADESCO).
• Other organizative spaces Water Board, School
  Council Board (CDE) and Juvenile Group.

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Factors for the arise

• The organizational tradition it is considered
  that the organization is the key to solve
  problems and they had organized in ADESCO, Water
  Board, ADESQUITO, Juvenile Group and Emergency
  Committee.
• The need to be ready to face emergencies
• Plan El Salvadors strategy promote the
  participation of children in managing risks.
• Began when the principal of school gave us the
  new that we will be part of this project, because
  some workers from Plan had told him that we will
  be trained in different topics that will prepare
  us for our future, about what to do in an
  emergency
• Workshop with children members of the Emergency
  Committee
• Community awareness about the need that children
  participate in the attention of emergencies and
  managing risks.

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The arising of the Emergency Committee in Petapa

• In 2005, with the support of Plan El Salvador
  promoted the creation of an emergency committee
  constituted by children and other one constituted
  by adults.
• It was Plan that planted the seed, the tree, but
  in but in the development of the idea we found
  some obstacles There were difficulties to grow
  up.
• Promotes the interrelation between the children
  emergency committee and the adults emergency
  committee.
• An emergency committee combined with adults and
  children was constituted.
• Join training and actions are realized to face
  and prevent emergency situation.
• Began with training from Plan, so we knew that
  also the children had rights to participate and
  act, step by step they were leading us in each
  training and then we felt supported by the people
  that came and so we began with the presentation
  of topics about childhood and some information
  about risk prevention, it grew up until what it
  is now and we are now
• The basic approach of the committee is to
  guaranteed the protection of the children rights
  in emergencies.
• The environment protection is perceived as a key
  element to prevent risks in the community.

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Actions realized

• Constant training in topics related with
  environment protection, answers facing
  emergencies, risk prevention and awareness about
  the children rights.
• ... We had done many actions, among them we
  stopped the extraction of rock from the river, we
  have received some trainees , and in my case I
  feel good because I share with people from other
  communities and now I know, that the adolescents
  are able to do anything we want
• Organization of Committees and Brigades.
• Incidence actions in local agents (ADESCO,
  church, etc) to avoid the damage of the riverside
  at Sumpul river and became a risk factor for
  children and the community.
• Legalize the emergency committee before the Civil
  Protection authorities.
• Elaboration of a Plan to Mitigate and Prevent
  Risks to face possible situations of emergency.
• We have made a map where are located the most
  vulnerable zones, we had created the brigades

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Actions realized

• Elaboration of a map with the vulnerable zones.
• Practices
• Establishment of relations with children and
  adults from the community Olosingo, located in
  Honduras, to protect the basin of the Sumpul
  river.
• ... And also a stop to the extraction of rock
  from the river, it didnt have defense and when
  rise, some of the houses could be in great
  danger.
• Coordination with institutions that work in risk
  prevention.
• Construction of a retention wall at the school
  due to the landslide risks, as the construction
  of fences.
• Cleaning campaigns and education to prevent
  emergency situations.

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Approach work of the emergency committee

• The most important and the center of the action
  is the protection to the children rights, and
  guaranteed their participation in all the
  decisions taken to face the emergency.
• Promote the interaction between the experiences
  of the adults and the creativity and enthusiasm
  of the children and adolescents, facilitating a
  process in which the differences of ideas, ages
  and approach are respected, about the different
  problems in the place.
• ...we had coexisted with adolescents from other
  communities we had learned to relate with
  adults, it is been useful to feel us important
  and that we value
• Formation of capacities in children to face
  emergencies and prevent risks.
• Inter-institutional coordination between the
  committee, the school, the health facility, the
  municipality, the PNC and Plan El Salvador to
  face coordinately the emergencies.

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Main achievements

• Children from the committee had acquired
  capacities and tools to face emergency
  situations.
• before I didnt know what to do in a disaster
  and now I do and I feel more confident and being
  part of a group makes me feel stronger
• Community organizative level that facilitates the
  protection, not just to the children rights, but
  the community.
• Prohibition to avoid the extraction of rock and
  sand from the Sumpul river, to guaranteed the
  children right to protection and recreation.
• a very important action that we did was to avoid
  the extraction of rock from the river we should
  have the risk that the river will dry and we are
  out of water we made signs to forbid the
  extraction, we made an agreement with other
  community in Honduras and we prevent the
  extraction of rock we had talked and told to
  many people the things we kinow so they can act
  in a disaster like we do and could help us.
• Children become a referent actor in the topic of
  attention and prevention of risk for neighbor
  communities like Olosingo, with whose we made
  coordinations. coordinaciones.

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Main achievements

• People from the community are aware about their
  duty to guaranteed the children right of
  protection facing emergencies and the importance
  of the participation of the children in the
  mitigation processes and risk prevention.
• the good thing is that we feel more encourage to
  act in cas of a disaster, to have the right to
  participate and make valuable our opinions
• The children express their ideas and opinions
  freely which are value and respected as for
  children as for adults.
• the children that are participating will be
  the facilitators of tomorrow, they will transmit
  their knowledge and acquired experience we
  didnt have that chance, if we could have it the
  things will be different. Children has fabulous
  ideas and can give if they have the chance,
  sometimes they dont develop their minds because
  the parents block them.
• The respect for the different ideas from boys,
  girls, adolescents, women and men had become part
  of the community daily life.
• we had learned to coexist with the adults and
  we know that they and we have ideas, sometimes
  different but both are important... They had
  valued this ideas and we valued their ideas
  too... Sometimes we felt that we have less value
  because we were younger than the adults but now
  we know that we are the same... All of us have
  new ideas to share.

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Obstacles

• Lack of confident in the parents about the
  participation of children in activities from the
  Emergency Committee, they didnt let them go.
• Many relatives dont support us because they say
  that we cant stop the land to prevent a
  landslide but I told them that we couldnt stop
  the land but we can do something to prevent it
  my brothers support me because they say that in
  the future I can be an example for other children
  in El Salvador and other countries
• Criticizes from the people for the participation
  of the children, which they think is a waste of
  time, or like a negative element for personal
  formation. They put them nicknames parrots and
  catalnicas.
• The people that see us for the first time,
  humiliate us, giving us nicknames or told us that
  we are not going to do nothing
• The children state that one of the main obstacles
  they found was the shy, so at the beginning
  they presented shyness attitudes that didnt
  allow them to express their ideas.
• The committee doesnt have the resources (money,
  materials and medicines) to do the actions
  projected.

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How they look themselves in the future

• With more experience and knowledge about what to
  do in case of a problem in the community, we
  have the resources and tools for it
• United, strength and team work
• With availability to help other people from the
  community to face the difficulties caused by the
  emergencies.
• Sharing the acquired knowledges and preparing
  more children to continue the effort and value
  and care much more their environment.
• Valueing the children rights and ourselves.
• Learning more every day through the training
• Happy and optimistic to remember and see what we
  have done. Proud of ourselves and the other
  members of the community.
• With more bravery to face the different
  problems, without fear to face any situation that
  could happen in the future and never stay behind
• With a beautiful river, with more stones and
  much water.
• With a better future, with better conditions for
  all, less threats and less disasters
• Establishing coordinations and support between
  the adults and children, in order to capitalize
  the experience and impregnate the creativity and
  enthusiasm.

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Messages from children
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Literary expression of the children