Berlin, 13 May 2014–  The “Blue Angels” who helped the Philippines in the aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda were hailed in Berlin.  Germany’s Minister of the Interior Dr. Thomas de Maizière and Ambassador Maria Cleofe R. Natividad expressed their appreciation to the German Federal Agency for Technical Relief (Technisches Hilfswerk THW) volunteer relief workers who went to the Philippines to assist in the Typhoon Yolanda relief and recovery operations during a reception in honor of the volunteers.

The reception was organized by the Federal Ministry of the Interior and was hosted by the Bavarian Representation to the Federal Republic of Germany in Berlin.

Some 130 volunteer relief workers and officials of THW, and Ambassadors and representatives from the Republic of the Philippines, the Republic of Slovenia, the Kingdom of Jordan and the Kurdistan Regional Government in Iraq attended the reception.

Minister de Maizière praised the spirit of volunteerism of the THW emergency workers in the latest THW international relief missions to the Philippines, Jordan, Kurdistan-Iraq, and Slovenia.  Minister de Maizière expressed his appreciation to the companies and employers who allowed their employees to take vacation leaves on short notice, and continued paying their salaries even if absent from work.

Although THW is a federal agency for civil protection under the Ministry of the Interior specialized in providing emergency relief, only 1 percent work full-time for the office.  Ninety-nine percent of the more than 80,000 workers nationwide work voluntarily without pay to provide professional help to people in distress.

When Typhoon Yolanda struck the Philippines, THW was among the first humanitarian aid organizations to reach the Philippines.  Its teams  provided some 2 million liters of drinking water to the population between November 2013 to January 2014.  They also restored wells and groundwater sources.  In cooperation with the UN, THW teams helped in setting up the camps that would be used by other humanitarian workers in Guiuan and in Bantayan Island.

Known as the “blue angels”, THW workers are easily recognizable by their blue uniforms as volunteers who provide help during naturals disasters and emergencies.  “This is our standard uniform here in Germany, but in the Philippines, we wore a lighter uniform which is more suited to the tropical climate there,” volunteer Mr Andreas Häcker said.

He added that he was impressed by the positive spirit of the people he met in Leyte and Bantayan Island.  “They had lost everything, yet they were full of hope; it was the other way around- we ourselves were the ones they encouraged by their attitude,” he said.  “We work as self-contained units, we bring our own tents, tools, and food.  But the cooperation of the local population is very important in our work,” he added.

“What impressed me was the friendliness of the Filipinos everywhere we went,” volunteer Mr. Michael Nätschen said.  “I felt I had an obligation to give assistance to those who have lost everything in the typhoon, just as my parents’ generation in Germany were also recipients of emergency assistance after the war six decades ago,” he added.  He was filled with emotion as he recounted these to Ambassador Natividad.  “Ich kann es nicht in Worte fassen,”  (I cannot say it in words) to describe the experience of friendliness, resilience and optimism among the Filipino victims he encountered.

According to THW President Albrecht Broemme, THW deployed a total of 72 task forces to the Philippines from November 10, 2013 to January 31, 2014 to help in coping with the damage wrought by Typhoon Yolanda.  The THW volunteers told Ambassador Natividad how much they appreciated the support and cooperation they received from the population and the local authorities.

“I have experienced the friendliness and cooperation myself when I was there,” Ms. Anne Zimmermann said.  A full-time worker at THW’s main office in Bonn, Ms. Zimmermann coordinated all the THW task forces to the Philippines and supervised the organizational arrangements needed by the emergency teams.

Ambassador Natividad thanked the THW volunteers to the Philippines for their personal sacrifices and commitment, and expressed to them her hope that a similar system based on volunteers can be institutionalized in the Philippines for disaster relief.   -END

Today, we launch Version 2.0 of the Foreign Aid Transparency Hub (FAiTH)—with enhancements that allow it to deliver more fully on its promise of transparency and accountability for aid and assistance given to the Philippines in the aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda. The improvements that distinguish FAiTH 2.0 from its initial launch lie primarily in the fact that 64 countries and 7 multilateral organizations now have access to FAiTH’s content management system.

With each embassy or organization now possessing a unique account username and password, they now have the ability to input or update their country or organization’s cash and non-cash pledges. Necessary measures are in place to ensure accuracy and ease of verification. As embassies update their data, each successful entry will generate a unique transaction ID and an electronic alert sent to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). Each update must also be officially communicated to the DFA via Note Verbale. A number of these embassies and organizations have already updated their data; thus, the figures on this version of FAiTH are also the most updated figures on aid and assistance.

Version 2.0 will also record assistance pledged or given by private, foreign nongovernment organizations (NGOs) made to the Philippines, so long as this assistance has been officially communicated to the DFA through Note Verbale. Donations from private individuals coursed through Philippines embassies abroad are also included in the tally.

In light of the enhancements that have been made to FAiTH, we are respectfully calling on the entire diplomatic corps, as well as our other development partners, to provide detailed information on the aid and assistance they have given. With greater accuracy of data that FAiTH provides, all our efforts—from that of the Philippine government to private organizations, to our international partners—can be guided accordingly towards greater success.

FAiTH Version 2.0 is founded on a system that emphasizes accuracy and our collective responsibility to ensure that every form of assistance given out of the good will of the global community achieves its intended goal: to help the survivors of Yolanda. By so doing, it strengthens partnerships, fosters trust, and ensures that we will continue our march on the journey to recovery and resilience together.###