Burkina Faso: World Vision's Emergency Relief Brings Vital Aid to Kaya
By Mohamed El Habib Cisse, Communication officer, WV Burkina Faso
World Vision has launched an emergency project to support vulnerable populations in Kaya, a town in the Center-North region of Burkina Faso. Called the 'Emergency and Multisectoral Assistance Project for Vulnerable People', this initiative covers several important areas, such as protection, hygiene, and emergency shelter.
Funded by Start Network and implemented by World Vision in collaboration with the NGO APIL, the project will run for 45 days.
From 6 to 10 May 2025, our teams carried out a large-scale distribution of essential household item kits, commonly known as NFIs. These kits contained buckets, pots, mats, kettles, handwashing devices, soap, cloth wraps and other items.
“Receiving this kit this morning has been a huge relief,' said Habiba, a beneficiary at the distribution site. “Now my family and I have everything we need to cook, collect water and protect ourselves from the cold and mosquitoes.”
+ 1,500 household kits were distributed, including tarpaulins for temporary shelters. Additionally, over 1,000 dignity kits were given to women and girls to help them regain a sense of comfort and dignity in challenging circumstances.
“The aim of this project was to ease the suffering of vulnerable people in Kaya,” said Toussaint Korogo, World Vision's protection officer. "These distributions were also accompanied by awareness-raising activities on stress management to provide more holistic support on their journey to recovery."
Mobile Child-Friendly Spaces Bring Back Smiles
As Our teams set up mobile Child-Friendly Spaces to provide children with moments of joy and relief. Supervised by trained facilitators, the children took part in enjoyable recreational activities such as dancing, singing, storytelling and group games like football and card games. These sessions provided an emotional break from their daily struggles.
“These moments are very special for the children. They eagerly await the arrival of the facilitators,” said Barnabé, a site supervisor. ‘When the activities end, they immediately ask when the next session will be. We’ve noticed a real change: children who were once sad and withdrawn now participate with enthusiasm. They come and go with a smile on their faces. That’s our biggest reward.”
A total of three mobile Child-Friendly Space sites were set up, reaching over 2,000 children in total. To encourage attendance and ensure the children didn’t go home hungry, they received snacks at the end of each session.
Support for women affected by gender-based violence
In addition, income-generating kits were provided to women who are survivors of gender-based violence (GBV) to help them start small businesses. These kits contained items such as 6 kg gas cylinders and accessories, wheat flour, rice, buckets, oil and other supplies. The beneficiaries expressed their joy and commitment to using the support effectively.
This Emergency and Multisectoral Assistance Project was made possible thanks to funding from Start Network. The project's success was also instrumental thanks to the strong involvement of the regional humanitarian action authority and the local community through the establishment of Targeting and Complaint Committees, bringing much-needed relief to the people of the Centre-North region.