To respond to the devastation caused by two earthquakes on June 24, the federal government announced June 25 that
it will donate $5 million in humanitarian assistance funding. UPDATE: On June 30 it announced it will
match humanitarian donations given from June 25 to July 14 through members of the Humanitarian Coalition and the Canadian Red Cross up to $4 million.
As Canadians consider where to direct their donations, they may want to consider international relief and development organizations affiliated with the EFC and part of the Humanitarian Coalition. Here are some details and links:
- foodgrainsbank.ca: This grouping of 15 Christian agencies includes many EFC affiliates (e.g., Baptist, Lutheran, Alliance, Pentecostal, Evangelical Missionary, Mennonite, Nazarene, Salvation Army, Christian Reformed).
- humanitariancoalition.ca: An interfaith group of 12 international aid agencies based in Canada. Three are EFC affiliates: World Vision, Canadian Lutheran World Relief, and Canadian Foodgrains Bank (whose members are noted above).
If you find a charity that is new to you when searching anyplace online, a good idea is to check its reputation before donating. The Canadian Centre for Christian Charities has an
accreditation program where you can search the names of charities (note that browsing alphabetically can be tricky as groups with "The" as part of their official name are listed under T).
Another good idea to remember is that, while disaster responses are urgent, one of the best ways to contribute is by donating repeatedly over time to long-term development.
Image above shows the flag of Venezuala.