Nepal's Corona-affected children will receive help from a large-scale TV fundraiser on February 6.

When a national collection runs across the screen on national Danish television on February 6, 2021, some of the funds will help Nepal's Corona-affected children and their families through Mission East.

For the students in the small village of Umarak, attending classes at the local school was a daily risk. The building was both unsuitable and outright dangerous. Mission East now made the school day safe with the opening of a brand new school.

The new school opened in December 2020, and the timing could not be better: January is the coldest month in Tajikistan with temperatures that can reach well below zero. The old school was uninsulated and therefore so cold that it was decidedly unsuitable for teaching.

2020 was a challenging year on many fronts. But challenges are not only bad, they can also hold good opportunities if we pause and learn from the things that were difficult.

At the local civic center in Batroun, Lebanon, Sarah and 23 other vulnerable Syrian women are busy sewing face masks. In addition to giving Sarah an opportunity to help other vulnerable people, the project has also had a great impact on her personally: she can now continue her studies.

Sarah is a student. However, due to the COVID-19 outbreak and the growing economic crisis in Lebanon, her parents can no longer pay for her education.

The Corona pandemic has taught us the importance of local staff, local partners and equipping locals to mitigate disasters. Everything that Mission East is good at, says futurist Marianne Levinsen.

- The expertise you have gained in disaster areas, you can now transfer to other countries in need, she adds.

PORTRAIT: Betina Gollander-Jensen is appointed as the new Managing Director of Mission East from 1st of January 2021. She comes from a position as International Manager of Caritas and has previously been abroad with DANIDA and the UN in South Africa, Uganda, Sudan and Kenya.

Innovation and consolidation. Local cooperation and tight financial management. Focus on the individual in need and strengthen the entire organization.