US Chargé d'Affaires Gerald Whitman joined Kirsty Sword Gusmão--First Lady of Timor-Leste First Lady and director of the Alola Foundation, a local NGO--for the first delivery of USAID-funded washable, reusable feminine hygiene kits to 1,500 women at a camp for internally displaced persons in Dili. The kits, called Pakote Pensu (sanitary napkin packet), were designed by Alola Foundation staff and include underwear, toweling napkins, and detergent. The items are distributed in a small bucket and are intended to provide a more sustainable and environmentally friendly means for women who live in the camps to manage their monthly menstruation.

A rapid assessment by the Alola Foundation in the larger camps helped evaluate the specific issues, including water supply, rubbish disposal, and toilet and washing facilities. After talking to the residents, the Alola Foundation decided to produce and distribute 17,750 of the packets in 15 camps. The project will employ 17 women to producing the kits.

The Alola Foundation project is one of many activities funded by USAID to respond to the humanitarian needs of people displaced by the disturbances in May and June. Through its partners and special grants from its Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance, USAID is working to improve the health of the people of Timor-Leste, particularly women and children.

CARE's work is linked closely to the coordination efforts of the government of Timor-Leste, and particularly the Ministry of Labor. OFDA support will ensure that CARE's activities continue for two months in conjunction with the efforts of other donors and humanitarian aid organizations, including the Timor-Leste Red Cross, to assist the 150,000 IDPs across the country.

OFDA is the office within USAID responsible for facilitating and coordinating US government emergency assistance overseas. OFDA provides humanitarian assistance to save lives, alleviate human suffering, and reduce the social and economic impact of humanitarian emergencies. In Timor-Leste, OFDA works through the USAID Timor-Leste mission to support its strategic objective of improving the health of Timor-Leste's people, especially women and children at greatest risk.