Acting as part of the greater church . . .
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| Children are among the most impacted by European crisis of forced migration — Daniel Fekete/HIA/ACT |
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) will support our European partners and members of ACT Alliance (Action by Churches Together) as they minister to the large influx of forced migrants from the Middle East (including Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq) and also from Northern and Middle Africa.
ACT member Hungarian Interchurch Aid (HAI) has issued an appeal to help displaced persons in Hungary to provide hygiene items to the migrants, emergency shelters and preparing them for the winter, while also offering psycho-social support. By giving access to essential life-saving items, it will reduce vulnerability of the affected populations and help support their safety and dignity. Migrants on their way to the centers, or to a Western European country (Austria, Germany, Sweden) are staying at railway stations, parks and underpasses, trying to find some rest after the long journey
Hungarian Interchurch Aid’s team consists of child psychologists, social workers and volunteers. HIA has started to provide psychosocial services for children in two temporary reception centers in Hungary. In both centers an average of 50-100 children stay temporary, typically for a couple of days. The target group of the project is children between 3-14 years. HIA surveys show that the psychosocial assistance is a stop-gap support for these people that will assist the children in particular.
Many of the forced migrants are refugees from Syria
