American Ambassador visits one of the Child Friendly Spaces

Tirana, 31 January 2020 – The newly appointed American Ambassador, Yuri Kim visited one of the Child-Friendly Spaces in Manze, established by UNICEF Albania thanks to the generous support from USAID. During her visit the Ambassador met with children and learned about UNICEF's emergency relief work in the areas of child protection and education.

USAID provided funding to UNICEF Albania, to ensure the provision of psychosocial support services to children and families who have suffered losses and displacement after the earthquake.  This funding is helping to provide children with a safe place to heal, play, and improve their well-being while their families and communities begin to recover and rebuild.

“UNICEF set up 8 child-friendly spaces including in Manez camp and deployed a multi-disciplinary team of nearly 40 professionals comprised of psychologists, social workers, social animators and teachers who directly supported over 1400 children and parents who benefitted from psycho-social activities,” said Jawad Aslam, Deputy Representative in Albania.

In the three months since the earthquake, UNICEF in partnership with NISMA NGO has supported children to enjoy the right to safety, play, relax and to study together. Since the affected population is redirected to alternative housing solutions, UNICEF re-strategize its approach and moved its support services to rural areas, where the affected population continues living in tents, because for them the alternative housing solutions are limited. There are four new “Child-Friendly Spaces” fully functional in the rural areas of the Tirana region: Ndroq, Zallherr, Kashar and Baldushk – where nearly 900 families, affected by the earthquake are residing.