2022-23 International Report
International Service Committee
Director: Bill Hewett
Committee: Maggie Dwyer, Martin Hardy (resigned 16 February), Vic Malikoff, Gordon McKinnon, Lindsay Miller, Peter Newell (from 11 May), Jim Sawyer.
 
Overview
In the 2022-2023 year the International Committee broke its Budget into three groups:-
         1. Regular projects for which we requested payment soon after the 
                  Club Assembly Meeting confirmed our provisional budget.
         2. Provisional projects for which we requested payment soon after the 
                  February wash up of the HIO fundraising results, and
         3. Some contingency provisions so we would be able to address any 
                  emergency relief style projects which were identified.
 
Projects we supported this year. 
# Interplast
Interplast Australia and New Zealand is a non-profit organisation, which sends fully qualified Australian and New Zealand volunteer plastic and reconstructive surgeons, anaesthetists, nurses and allied health professionals to the Asia Pacific region to provide free surgical treatment for patients who would otherwise not be able to afford access to such services. We have supported Interplast now for 15 years, this year we contributed $500 to Interplast in our early release of funds.
 
# ROMAC– Rotary Oceania Medical Aid for Children
The purpose of ROMAC, an initiative of Australian Rotarians, is to bring seriously ill or injured children from developing countries where medical attention is unavailable for lifesaving or dignity restoring treatment. Children from over 20 countries have had treatment facilitated by ROMAC over the last 10 years. The Committee agreed to continue our support this year, and again contribute $500 to ROMAC in our early release of funds.
 
# RAM– Rotarians Against Malaria
Malaria remains a significant disease worldwide. The WHO Malaria Report of 2021 reported that there were 241 million cases of malaria in 2020, resulting in 627,000 deaths. The battle against Malaria requires a global effort. Rotarians Against Malaria is focused on implementation and provides the means to have the largest impact for the dollars expended. Malaria is relatively easy and inexpensively preventable and treatable. Malaria control can have a dramatic impact on economic development. The Committee agreed to continue our support this year, and again contribute $500 to RAM in our early release of funds.
 # ShelterBox Australia
ShelterBox is a global Rotary humanitarian program that provides shelter, comfort and dignity to people affected by natural and other disasters.  ShelterBox supports disaster-hit families in their recovery with essential items like tents, tarpaulins, toolkits, solar lights, water filters. This support remains very relevant particularly with the COVID 19 and other apparent climate induced issues stretching so many other initiatives, in times of a “disaster” in our general geographic area fast support is necessary.  This year, the Club contributed $3,000 to purchase 3 ShelterBoxes, spread through the year. 
 
 
 
# Fred Hollows Foundation
The Fred Hollows Foundation is inspired by work of the late Professor Fred Hollows, whose vision was for a world where no one was needlessly blind. Working to continue Fred's vision, The Fred Hollows Foundation in Australia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom form a global network to increase our collective impact in eradicating avoidable blindness around the world. This year we released the budgeted $1,000 in our early release of funds.
 
# RAWCS– Rotary Australia World Community Service
In Australia, Rotary Australia World Community Service Ltd (RAWCS) is the arm of Rotary International that assists Rotary Clubs to develop and manage international projects as part of their community service. This year we contributed $250 to assist villages in the Oecusse area, Timor-Leste in environmental challenges aimed at reducing the incidence of infant mortality & disease by improving food supplies, water, sanitation & the environment.
 
A further $250 was contributed to support a partnership between The Global Fund and RAM Australia in their aim to raise USD12m over a five-year period for the fight against malaria in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste and Vanuatu.
 
# RARE– Rotary Australia Repurposing Equipment
In previous years this project was designated DIK (Donations In Kind) it is now called RARE. The International Committee agreed that this support remains relevant and planned to contribute $500 assuming a request would come from the RARE team. The funds are yet to be spent. It is possible that we may call on RARE to assist in the shipment of the repurposed tanks to Timor-Leste, see East Timor Water below.
 
# Water East Timor – Timor-Leste
Over the last sixteen years the Club has been involved in the support of an ongoing project in East Timor.  This started with the support of the efforts initiated by Dr. Noel Bayley and has involved hands on projects driven by Andy Graham ably supported by many from our Club and Warrnambool’s Water East Timor Committee.  This year we contributed $10,000 to the WET committee primarily for use in the repurposing a large water tank available from the Port Fairy Hospital.  As we have done before with an earlier tank, this will be dismantled and converted into three smaller tanks each able to provide water to an individual village.  Again, Past Rotarian Andy will be coordinating this operation and will seek some hands-on support from us in breaking the tank and making the conversion prior to shipping it to Timor-Leste. Further, from the budgeted Emerging Projects contingency we have allocated an additional $2000 to our WET contribution.
 
# Joy Irvine Recognition
Last year Paul Lougheed, the CEO of Southern Way, identified a project supporting the youth in Cambodia – a Rock Climbing Wall. We agreed that supporting this project was an excellent way to recognize the work of our past member Joy Irvine. We made a second contribution of $250 this year to continue our support of Paul’s initiative.
 
 
 
# One Off Emergency Relief style projects
Obviously, international disaster response is an important aspect of our International Committee’s brief. In past years the Club has supported many special emergency response international initiatives. This year via the Foundation Committee we transferred $2500 to support the Ukraine people and a further $2500 to support the people in Turkey or Türkiye and Syria impacted by the earthquake.
 
Expenditure Summary
         Regular Projects
                  Interplast                                         $     500
                  ROMAC                                            $     500
                  RAM                                                $     500
                  Shelter Box Australia                         $  3,000
                  Fred Hollows Foundation                    $  1,000
                  Water East Timor (WET)                      $12,000
                  RAWCS                                            $     500
                  Joy Irvine Recognition (Cambodia)#       $     250       $18,250
 
         Funds contributed via The Rotary Foundation
                  Ukraine Support                                $  2,500
                  Turkey & Syria Earthquake                 $  2,500       $  5,000
 
         TOTAL Expenditure                                                     $23,250
 
Bill Hewett
Director