In July, monsoon rains swept across northern India. The period is expected to last until September and rainfall is extremely important for Indian agriculture. But with the rains come floods, and the consequences are often devastating, with deaths and communities completely destroyed.

This is the current situation in northern India. Here, the weather has become increasingly extreme in recent years and this year's monsoon rains came after a long and intense heatwave. The result was quickly catastrophic, with several landslides and severe flooding. The worst affected areas are those along India's major rivers, where people have been forced to flee their homes empty-handed and seek temporary shelter in makeshift tents.

Support package for almost 600 households

Up to 200 deaths have been reported from six states, while destroyed houses, bridges and roads have devastated both smaller villages and larger communities. Erikshjälp's local partner organization EFICOR was quickly on the ground in the areas of Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi to provide both emergency assistance and financial support to the affected households.

Erikshjälpen is contributing to an effort focused on families affected by flooding along the Yamuna River in East Delhi. Here, support packages with food, tools and shelter materials have been distributed to almost 600 households - mainly to vulnerable groups such as people with disabilities, widows and single women. It is hoped that another 300 households in Delhi will receive relief packages in the coming weeks.

Hope of moving back home

Since EFICOR started the operation in mid-July, more than 1,700 households have received assistance in the form of support packages or financial support. Help that gives hope to the affected families. Hope to overcome all the challenges brought by the floods and hope to eventually move back to their homes. For EFICOR, work continues in the affected areas and the aim is to reach a total of 5,000 households in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi.

Author: Johan Larsson

How we support those who remain

Our interventions inside Ukraine aim to help and support children and families who are forced to seek shelter or live as internally displaced persons. Our partner on the ground is working to provide those in need with food, water, blankets, clothing and other necessities. We also provide psychosocial support and social assistance to affected people - directly on the ground but also by phone and online.

Many of the internally displaced are children and young people. They are forced into difficult routes, with unsafe transportation and accommodation. We are working to strengthen their protection, with the help of our local partners, who are working on the ground to meet the unique needs of each child.

Author: Elin Jonsson

260 million children worldwide do not attend school, despite the fact that all children have the right to do so. Of the children who miss out on schooling, girls are clearly overrepresented. Erikshjälpen is working in many ways to change this.

In the coastal areas of Bangladesh, poverty is enormous. The situation means that child labor, school dropout, child marriage and migration due to climate change are a major part of children's daily lives. The government schools that currently exist are inadequate and it is difficult to recruit teachers. Many girls drop out of school after grade five.

From dropout to hope

In the summer of 2022, we launched a three-year project in two of Bangladesh's poorest coastal districts - where the first steps were taken to build eight new schools. The project "From dropout to hope", Erikshjälpen does together Codec and Friendship - two local partner organisations.

The work is funded by the Postcode Lottery, where Erikshjälpen is one of seven organisations that together have received Swedish kronor (SEK) 50 million to promote girls' right to education. Read more about the Postcode Lottery's thematic initiative here.

This is what we do in the project

• We are building eight schools for grades six to eight (equivalent to secondary school).
• Schools are placed close to children's homes to prevent school drop-out.
• The schools are being built with sustainable technology and solar panels, to enable digital education via monitors by some of Dhaka's best teachers.
• We allow children to participate in children's rights groups where their confidence is strengthened, so that they can grow as individuals and learn to stand up for themselves.
• We will increase the preparedness of families in relation to climate change and severe weather changes.
• We advocate in the area, so that the adult world takes girls' right to education seriously.

In this work, the future students are part of the project, and we will follow them on their path to education. They will be involved in discussions about the building and participate in workshops where they can dream and plan together. 

The whole community benefits from girls' right to education

Investing in girls' education is investing in whole communities. More children have more choices, can get jobs and become more independent. This is vital for them, their families and the communities around them.

- "It was incredibly inspiring to hear about Erikshjälpen's work in Gränby. They work broadly to give children, young people and parents a sense of participation and self-determination in their neighborhood, says Märta.

In Gränby, many children and young people feel that there is a strong negative image of the area and those who live there. Erikshjälpen's Future Workshop has become a platform where young people can make their voices heard to the public and decision-makers.

- "Young people being more involved in how neighborhoods are developed makes them more inclusive, safe and vibrant," says Hanna Löfstrand, Head of Unit for Erikshjälpen's Future Workshop.

About Erikshjälpen Framtidsverkstad in Gränby

Erikshjälpen's Future Workshop in Gränby started in the spring of 2021. Today there are many different activities for both girls and boys. Such as different types of groups in dance, boy and girl groups, nature and culture, but they have also started to organize camps for the young people.

- "We also have a positive collaboration with the municipality with vacation youth, which is now entering its third year," says Hanna Löfstrand. "This year, the focus is on activities for children at various leisure activities that will give young people increased knowledge of the Convention on the Rights of the Child based on Erikshjälpen's material, 'Barnrättsäventyret'.

Engaging conversations on injustice and mental health

When Erikshjälpen's Future Workshop and the young people had talked about the activities in Gränby, it was time for the young people to ask Märta Stenevi questions. It was a good conversation that dealt with everything from injustices in public transport to the increased mental illness among young people.

- During the spring, I have traveled around the country and met with police officers, teachers, social workers and actors from civil society who all work with young people, says Märta Stenevi and continues:

- Everyone says the same thing. If we are to break the negative criminal spiral, resources need to be deployed early on from various sources, so that children who are hurting at home or have fallen into trouble are caught.

Summer vacation is the time of year when many of the inequalities in growing up in Sweden become most apparent. Graduations and student parties are just around the corner, and many children and young people get a well-deserved summer break after a busy school year. But the summer break is also a time of hardship for many.

Many families in Sweden struggle financially during the summer period. Not everyone can afford to go on vacation and many children stay at home, with nothing to do.

Young people lack the resources to get their first summer job, leading to a lack of activities and employment for several months. This lack can lead to a feeling of hopelessness - a feeling and situation that criminal gangs like to exploit to recruit new members.

We offer vacation internships during the summer

Every year, Erikshjälpen Framtidsverkstäder takes in young people as vacation interns and offers them a job during the summer. The vacation internship gives the young people a context, but also an income and lessons that can be built on in future summers - as a valuable line in a CV. During the internship, young people can organize activities for other young people, take part in local events, and participate in advocacy activities, such as interviewing people in power.

Erikshjälpen Framtidsverkstad Linköping welcomes four young people who are doing their holiday internship on site in the Skäggetorp area this year.

- "I'm looking forward to doing fun activities for children and young people in Skäggetorp," says one of the young people when they meet for an introduction at the Future Workshop on June 2.

For further information

Erikshjälpen Framtidsverkstad