How UNICEF Innovation Helps Lost Children After Typhoon Haiyan | UNICEF USAHow UNICEF Innovation Helps Lost Children After Typhoon Haiyan | UNICEF USA












UNICEF United States Fund


Menu



Donate
How to HelpSign Up
shop
Fundraise
advocate
give monthly
tribute gifts
attend an event
volunteer




sign inregister



our missionSaving LivesEbola
Water
Nutrition
Immunization
HIV/AIDS
Malaria

Building FuturesEducation
Trafficking
Violence
Disabilities

Emergency ReliefConflict
Earthquakes
Food Crises
Floods
Hurricanes
Tsunamis

Where UNICEF WorksIraq
Syria
Central African Republic
South Sudan
Philippines

U.S. Fund InitiativesTrick-or-Treat for UNICEF
UNICEF Tap Project
Eliminate Project
End Trafficking
U.S. Volunteering
U.S. Advocacy
TeachUNICEF


our supportersDonorsMonthly Donors
Next Generation
Planned Giving Donors
Audrey Hepburn Society

VolunteersOnline Activists
Fundraisers
College Clubs
High School Clubs
Marathon Runners
Teachers

OrganizationsBusinesses
Foundations
Faith-based Groups
Civil Society Partners

Regional CommunitiesMidwest
New England
New York
Northwest
Southeast
Southern California
Southwest

CelebritiesUNICEF Ambassadors
Athletes, Teams & Sports Leagues


about usPeopleBoard of Directors
Senior Management
Careers

OfficesNew York (Headquarters)
Atlanta
Boston
Chicago
Dallas
Houston
Los Angeles
San Francisco
Washington, D.C.

Finances91% of Every $1 Spent Helps Kids
Charity Navigator: Highest Rating
Better Business Bureau Accredited
Download 2013 Annual Report [PDF]

Contact UsFrequently Asked Questions
Email
Facebook
Twitter
(800) 367-5437






Search form

Search 


















P11000691.jpg

 












Philippines Typhoon Haiyan 




How UNICEF Innovation Helps Lost Children After Typhoon Haiyan


November 21, 2013


By
    
  
  Kini Schoop
  
  

SubscribeRSS





UNICEF will begin using RapidFTR (Family Tracing and Reunification) in the Philippines tomorrow.












RapidFTR, a mobile phone-based tool developed by UNICEF, speeds up the process of identifying unaccompanied children and reuniting them with their families. Mac Glovinsky leads the Emergencies group in UNICEF’s Innovation Unit in New York and was deployed to the Philippines as part of the five-person RapidFTR team. Kini Schoop, the U.S. Fund's Public Relations Director, spoke with Glovinsky in Manila before he left for Tacloban.
 Mac Glovinsky of UNICEF'S Innovations Unit in Manila. ©Kini Schoop/U.S. Fund for UNICEF 

How does RapidFTR streamline the reunification process after a disaster?
Mac Glovinsky: It allows the quick input of a child's essential details and photo. These are uploaded to a central database whenever network access becomes available. Emergency child protection workers in the field register children in their care and search existing entries to help distressed parents find their missing children.
Has UNICEF ever used RapidFTR before? Where? Tell us about it?  
Glovinsky: RapidFTR was developed by UNICEF for use in Uganda during emergencies there. UNICEF has since used it in South Sudan. To date, it has registered over a thousand children.
What do you have to do to get RapidFTR up and running?
Glovinsky: Our day-to-day work will involve training UNICEF field staff members and partners how to enter data into the phones, take pictures correctly and use the system. We'll begin at our Child Friendly Spaces in the affected areas, and later, through other registration points for displaced persons. This means spending most of our days out in the field in the hardest hit areas, working alongside emergency responders.
What makes your work exciting?
Glovinsky: I like working in emergencies because of the pace and pressure to deliver on a massive scale. It’s something I’ve found extremely challenging and equally, if not more, rewarding. Using new technologies and processes to deliver better for children always poses new and interesting challenges, and I like to think on my feet.
See UNICEF's RapidFTR system at work reuniting lost children with their families in Uganda. 
Donate Now




























More on this issue:

Hurricane Relief



Philippines Typhoon Hagupit








Related stories:


  

 The Best Way to Put Children First  


 World Polio Day: Celebrating Big Achievements 


 Malala Yousafzai and Kailash Satyarthi Win Nobel Peace Prize 
 
















our missionEmergency Relief
Ebola
Iraq
Syria
Saving Lives
Building Futures
Education
Where UNICEF Works
U.S. Fund Initiatives

our supportersDonors
Volunteers
Organizations
Regional Communities
Celebrities
User Events

about usFinances
Contact Us
People
Offices





Give Monthly »
Stories of UNICEF in Action »
For the Press »



Donate



















(800) 367-5437 | 125 Maiden Lane, New York, NY 10038.© 2014 U.S. Fund for UNICEF. All rights reserved.




FAQ
Contact
Site Map
Jobs








