This World Humanitarian Day 19^th August 2020, Charter4Change wish to pay tribute to all our #localheroes who demonstrate local capacity. Charter4Change wish to see the humanitarian aid system effectively reflecting a shared humanity, solidarity in diversity and equal dignity among people.

Local humanitarian workers are real life heroes, who struggle to preserve the life of others by putting their own lives on the line. Today more than ever before, it seems, humanitarian crisis abounds everywhere in their diverse forms and shapes. #LocalHeroes like the ones represented in the blogs below are humanitarians who defy all odds, make extraordinary sacrifices amidst heighten insecurity from Northeast Nigeria to Afghanistan.

Afghanistan / Assalam Welfare Foundation

Assalam Welfare Foundation, with support from international donors, managed to reach some of the most vulnerable communities during the pandemic. With the help of their volunteers, they managed to identify those vulnerable in target areas such as IPD camps in Kabul and villages in Kunar province by carrying out need assessment and pre-distribution survey. Around 400 food packages including flour, rice, tea, cooking oil, salt, and sugar were distributed to the families affected by unemployment due to COVID-19.

This program has benefitted around 3200 people! In addition to the pandemic response, Assalam Welfare Foundation also arranged awareness Shared on email sessions and distributed COVID-19 flyers and messages in 5 districts of Kunar, with support from Geneva Call during the pandemic. Assalam plans to arrange 150 more awareness sessions in areas which are going to be arranged in areas under the control of the government and those which are not under government control. In order to continue delivering essential services, local and national organisations must receive more quality funding.