Panalpina and UNICEF have joined forces for the fourth consecutive year to fly aid to Africa, operating a charter flight to Chad, transporting more than 80 tonnes of life saving goods.
The relief goods including blankets and tarpaulins, therapeutic food for children, and medical equipment and drugs, provided by UNICEF landed in N’Djamena on a flight chartered and donated by Panalpina. It flew from Liege Airport in Belgium, which waived 50 per cent of the landing fee. The cargo will address needs in the areas of health, hygiene and nutrition as well as children’s recreation, particularly in refugee camps.
UNICEF Swiss committee executive director, Elsbeth Mueller says: “Our goal is to reach the most vulnerable children that are in dire need of help. In landlocked Chad, there are many of them. We are very grateful for Panalpina’s continued support with yet another relief flight to Africa.”
Much of the cargo is destined for the Kanem region in the West of Chad, which suffers high levels of malnutrition and very limited access to water. The delivery included more than 15 tonnes of therapeutic milk sachets to treat severely malnourished children under five, and 22 tonnes of tents and tarpaulin for shelter.
Panalpina chief executive officer, Stefan Karlen says: “As in previous years, we decided that a charitable donation in the form of an aircraft charter for UNICEF would be of more value than Christmas gifts for customers and employees.”
“The goal of our donated charter remains the same too: to bring some respite to those who are less fortunate than us, especially children.”
Panalpina and operated its first UNICEF relief flight in 2013, bringing goods to the Central African Republic, followed by a flight to Sierra Leone in 2014 to help battle the Ebola virus, and to Burundi in 2015 where recurring crisis and violence took a heavy toll.
