One of Australia’s closest neighbours, Indonesia is a country of extraordinary contrasts.
Made up of over 17,000 islands, 700 languages and 300 ethnic groups, it is well placed to live up to its national motto, ‘unity in diversity’.
Indonesia lies in a disaster-prone region, suffering from recurrent shocks such as earthquakes, drought and internal conflict. The impacts of a changing climate are especially felt in some of the country’s poorest communities, where more than half work in agriculture, often as small-scale subsistence farmers.
Two-thirds of Indonesians live in rural areas. Despite a steadily developing economy, the gap between rich and poor has grown by up to 60 per cent in the last decade.
CARE has worked in Indonesia since 1967, initially in food distribution, small infrastructure projects, health, environment, water, and sanitation.
In the wake of a series of shocks in the late 1990s, we redirected our focus towards emergency programming.
Today, our work in Indonesia focuses on disaster risk reduction and emergency response, natural resource management, and responding to climate change, health, and livelihoods. We also work on child rights and support at-risk youth.
Learn more about CARE Indonesia at https://careindonesia.or.id/.
2018 Indonesia Tsunami
Following a massive 7.5-magnitude earthquake, a tsunami as high as six metres smashed into the Indonesian island of Sulawesi, causing catastrophic damage and loss of life.
More than 1,200 people have lost their lives. Almost 42,000 people have been displaced. The overall affected population is 1.5 million people.
CARE was on the ground in Indonesia, where we have worked for over 50 years alongside local partners. We assessed the damage and responded with life-saving clean water, shelter, and hygiene kits.
You can help provide lifesaving aid and services to families when emergencies like this strike by giving generously to our Global Emergency Fund here.
2004 Boxing Day Tsunami
On the morning of Boxing Day 2004, a massive earthquake, one of the most powerful in history, struck the west coast of northern Sumatra. The quake triggered a powerful tsunami that would see more than 280,000 people killed and more than a million others displaced.
In Aceh, one of the worst-affected areas, more than 132,000 lives were lost. The debris from homes and other infrastructure was strewn across thousands of kilometres of shoreline, and millions of people, having lost everything, were left to rebuild their lives.
In the immediate aftermath, CARE’s emergency response teams were among the first to provide critical relief to those in desperate need of food, clean water and shelter. During what would become our largest ever humanitarian relief effort, we provided critical support for 1.3 million people across five countries, over a five-year period, thanks to the support from our generous donors.
In the years following the disaster, our relief efforts shifted to the sustainable and long-term recovery of tsunami-affected communities, helping people rebuild their lives, be better informed and have more resources to prevent and reduce the effects of future emergencies.
You can help provide lifesaving aid and services to families when emergencies like this strike by giving generously to our Global Emergency Fund here.
Donate now
Support our ongoing work to create a more equal world.
Your donation can help end extreme poverty and give people the means to build a better future for themselves in countries like Indonesia.
For those living in extreme poverty, your support brings education and training, healthcare and clean water, nutritious food, and new ways to earn an income. And in times of crisis, you help us deliver emergency relief. Please donate today.
Photo: © Yayasan CARE Peduli (YCP) and © CARE.
