AMMAN, JORDAN – A shipment of badly needed personal hygiene soap and laundry detergent for Iraqi children arrived in Baghdad on March 31 as part of the U.S.-based All Our Children campaign, a multi-agency effort. The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is supporting this campaign.

The truckload of hygiene supplies originated in Amman, Jordan, crossed the border into Iraq this morning and reached Baghdad this afternoon, reported Church World Service (CWS), a founding member of the campaign. The 5.5 metric tons of soap-- enough to support the hygiene needs of 14,688 Iraqi children for six months-- and 5.8 metric tons of laundry detergent will be distributed by CARE Iraq to support UNICEF'S child nutrition program in Iraq.

CWS International Emergency Response Consultant in Amman, Steve Weaver, says the supplies will be used in "UNICEF nutrition rehabilitation wards in 68 pediatric and district hospitals throughout southern and central Iraq, as access allows." Weaver says they are projecting that the supplies "will support 14,688 children in the next six months.

"To help break the cycle of malnutrition and diarrhea, it's important to ensure good hygiene practices," he explains. The death rate of children under age five is already two and a half times greater than prior to the Gulf War.

The $1 million coalition All Our Children Campaign, based in Amman, Jordan, is endorsed by former President Jimmy Carter and Rosalynn Carter.

"We also received confirmation this week," says CWS Emergency Response Program Director Rick Augsburger, "that a first All Our Children shipment of $91,000 in medical supplies entered Iraq just prior to the war's outbreak, and has been distributed to the Mannsour Pediatric and Iskaan Pediatric Hospitals in Baghdad."

"We've gotten word from inside Baghdad that we are meeting simple yet critical needs with the soap and laundry detergent," says Augsburger. "The children need hygiene, and the hospitals need cleaning supplies. Reports out of Baghdad are telling us that some hospitals remain open, and so far CARE Iraq has been able to provide some locally purchased bleach." But Augsburger says "the need is great."

"When we visited Iraq in 1999," Augsburger recalls, "the lack of medical equipment and supplies in hospitals then was appalling. Conditions certainly haven't improved during this conflict."

CWS has already airlifted 4,500 blankets, valued at $19,170, to the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) in Amman, Jordan.

Since 1991 CWS has provided more than $3.8 million in UN-sanctioned health and medical supplies and humanitarian assistance to the Iraqi people.

The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is supporting the "All Our Children" campaign. One hundred percent of your tax-deductible gift to Advance #623225 "Iraq Emergency and earmarked for "All Our Children" will be used for this response. The generous giving of United Methodists to the One Great Hour of Sharing supplements the cost of Advance gifts. Give through a local United Methodist church or send financial contributions to: UMCOR, 475 Riverside Dr., Room 330, New York, NY 10115. Call 1-800-554-8583 to make a credit card donation.

Shipment of Soap for Pediatric Hospitals Arrives in Baghdad

Shipment of Soap for Pediatric Hospitals Arrives in Baghdad

Second Round of "All Our Children" Supplies to Benefit Nearly 15,000 Iraqi Children