Ministry of Social Affairs Collaborates with LPAI to Give Attention and LDP to Children Affected by Seroja Storm

NUSA TENGGARA TIMUR (April 23, 2021) - The Ministry of Social Affairs through the "Handayani" Children's Center in Jakarta responded to the natural disaster that occurred in East Nusa Tenggara at the direction of the Minister of Social Affairs, Tri Rismaharani to the Director General of Social Rehabilitation, Harry Hikmat. This disaster not only caused damage to physical buildings and casualties but also left unpleasant experiences for children.

In an effort to restore the mental well-being of children due to the disaster, the "Handayani" Children's Center assigned the Center Social Worker, Fajar Putra, and involved child observers, Seto Mulyadi or who is more familiarly called Kak Seto and Henny Hermanu or Kak Henny. Both are Chair and Secretary General of LPAI (Indonesian Child Welfare Institute) as well as Child Psychologists.

Upon arrival in Kupang on Sunday (18/4), the team immediately moved to the Oebobo District area, Kupang City. The team works closely with the local Social Work Service Unit (Sakti Peksos) in providing Psychosocial support services (LDP) to the children.

"We have coordinated with social workers in the field and immediately moved to the disaster location to the Oebono area, or in full on Jalan Amanuban. Here there are many children who have lost their homes due to landslides due to the Seroja storm which previously occurred on Sunday night," said Fajar.

Like other areas in NTT, Kupang City was also affected. On Jalan Amanuban itself, there were 38 houses that were lost and buried in the landslides, as well as houses that were damaged from light to severe. This makes many families have to flee with decent tent facilities.

"There are four evacuation points on Jalan Amanuban, Kota Kupang, and these posts are managed by residents independently. Evacuees live in residents' homes which are safer and there are only a few tents," said the NTT Sakti Peksos Supervisor, Dian.

The arrival of the Handayani Children's Center team was greeted with joy by the residents and the children who were in the evacuation.

"The children were very happy when they found out that Kak Seto was coming. They can't wait to meet in person," said Jenny, a child social worker in Kupang City.

LDP implementation is carried out interactively and is full of joy. Activities were carried out by inviting children to sing, tell stories, do magic, and dance together as well as fun quizzes. Some of the kids even chased Tim to ask about the secret of the magic he was doing

"We are very happy to be in NTT to entertain children through LDP activities and we hope the children can get back up and smile," said Kak Seto enthusiastically.

Disaster Psychosocial Support Services are an effort provided to reduce, heal and/or eliminate fear, stress, and trauma after a disaster. If left unchecked, it can affect the mental well-being of vulnerable groups, such as children, the elderly, and people with disabilities.

The implementation of the LDP by the "Handayani" Children's Center Team and LPAI was carried out in several places, namely in Kupang City, Lembata Regency, and East Flores Regency, in Adonara. At first, the team planned to carry out activities only in Kupang City, but due to a large number of requests from posts related to LDP activities, the team coordinated and developed plans to go to other areas in order to reach as many children as possible, but still taking into account the quality of the support services provided.

"We have visited 11 evacuation posts in Kupang City, Lembata, and Adonara within 6 days. The number of children we have provided psychosocial support to is 166 children in Kupang City in 4 Command Posts, 222 children in 5 Command Posts in Lembata District, and 87 children in Adonara. in 2 evacuation posts. So the total number of children who received LDP by our team is 475 children," said Fajar.

In addition, during the activity, parents were also given input through singing activities and fairy tales from Kak Seto and Kak Henny so that they would continue to pay attention to their children's growth and development.

"The role of parents is very important in situations like this to provide children with a sense of security and comfort," explained Kak Henny in front of the parents.

The implementation of LDP activities in these three regions provided a challenging experience for the team on duty, especially on the field trips being undertaken. The team had to board a fishing boat for 25 minutes from Kampung Waijarang in Lembata to Ile Boleng Harbor in Adonara, then upon arrival at Adonara the team immediately conducted an LDP at the Lama Nele Post, East Adonara until 19.30 WITA with wet clothes due to the crashing of the waves during the trip using the fishing boat.

"Our love for children brought us here. On Wednesday (21/6), we together with Balai Anak Handayani succeeded in conducting LDP in 6 evacuation posts at the same time efficiently and had an impact on children," said Kak Seto enthusiastically.

Coordination and collaboration are the most important aspects in the implementation of this activity to create synergy and effectiveness of support services. The team moved from post to post continuously in coordination with parties already in the field.

Appreciation from the Head of the Lembata Regency Social Service, Population Control and Family Planning, Ambrosius Wurin Leyn.

"I am very grateful to the Ministry of Social Affairs through the Handayani Children's Center for their attention to the children and families here. Frankly, natural disasters in Lembata Regency have occurred in succession, after Covid-19, then a volcanic eruption, and then a Seroja storm, the children need trauma healing," explained Ambrus.

Meanwhile, the Team has also provided 111 aid packages for children in three categories, namely infants, toddlers, and children and adolescents in Kupang City. Assistance is provided based on an assessment that has been carried out by the local social worker service unit which frequently visits evacuation sites. The assistance was symbolically handed over to the Head of the Social Rehabilitation Division of the NTT Province Social Service, Maria M.S Nduru.

Furthermore, the Team will continue to coordinate with related parties in order to fulfill a decent life for children and families in evacuation. The team also encouraged elements in the field to continue assisting children through LDP activities that are interactive and have an impact on improving children's mental well-being.

The hope is that the activities carried out can produce new colors in children so that they can channel fear, anxiety, and trauma into more positive emotions.