produced by marshall goodman and miguel for marshall arts music
tracked and mixed by miguel @ pepper tree, long beach
additional tracking by jeff lewis @ the compound , long beach
drums and percussion - marshall goodman
bass and guitars - miguel
b3 - gabe mcnair
keys - ikey owens
Good Charlotte front-man and UNICEF Ambassador Joel Madden back from first mission to Africa
Madden calls underreported water crisis and armed conflict in Central African Republic a silent emergency
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NEW YORK (November 10, 2008) — Saying the situation for children in the Central African Republic (CAR) constitutes a silent emergency, rocker and UNICEF Ambassador Joel Madden, today called on his fans and the general public to help put an end to the 25,000 deaths of children under age five in countries like CAR who die every day from preventable and treatable causes such as water-related diarrheal disease.
Madden is recently back in the US having spent a week observing UNICEF programming in CAR and visiting with vulnerable children of the war torn country, which is bordered on its north by Chad and Sudan.
"I see 25,000 fans in stadiums we play to regularly—I can visualize that number and it gives me chills to think that many children under five die everyday from preventable causes," said Madden who fronts the rock band Good Charlotte and was named UNICEF Ambassador this summer. "This trip taught me one major way we can tackle this and help reduce that number to zero is by making sure schools and communities get better access to safe water and sanitation facilities."
The provision of safe water and improved sanitation facilities is a priority for UNICEF programming in CAR where regional and cross border conflicts have internally displaced tens of thousands and left the government ill-equipped to deal with all the challenges facing children. This past year, UNICEF has supported dozens of water projects—including the repair and maintenance of existing wells and the drilling of hundreds more—all benefitting communities in the north of the country that have been disproportionately affected by violence.
Madden, was joined on his trip by brother and fellow band member, Benji, along with UNICEF staff and was able to speak with numerous children and their families whose lives, already disrupted by armed conflict, continue to be negatively affected by limited or inconsistent access to safe water.
Outside the capital city of Bangui, in the village of Sam Ouanda, Madden met with the families of 47 children who had succumb to water-related illnesses. The village borders the Darfur region of Sudan and has twice in the past year been attacked by rebels.
According to UNICEF, in addition to diarrhea caused by intestinal parasites found in dirty water, young children and their families who do not have bed nets are susceptible to malaria carried by mosquitoes bred in stagnant pools of water.
"Without every day access to clean water, sustainable development is impossible; returning to villages for displaced people is just a dream", said Mahimbo Mdoe, UNICEF Representative in CAR. "We are facing a huge infrastructure deficit and we are struggling to get more and more support."
Madden's trip comes at a timely moment, highlighting the situation of an overlooked country with some of the worst health indicators for children in sub-Saharan Africa. With the under-five mortality rate at 176 per 1,000 live births, one in five children do not live to see their fifth birthday. Maternal mortality rates hover at 1,355 per 100,000, and HIV/AIDS prevalence (6.2 percent) continues to wreak havoc on the population—particularly those made vulnerable by chronic poverty and the ongoing conflict.
Though a long-time activist on behalf of children, this was Madden's first trip to CAR and his first mission as a UNICEF Ambassador. He and long-time girlfriend Nicole Richie recently founded The Richie-Madden Children's Foundation to raise awareness about issues facing children around the world and to inspire the public, especially young people, to get involved. Madden will also serve as the 2009 national spokesman for UNICEF's clean water campaign, the Tap Project. Now in its third year, the Tap Project is a grassroots initiative to provide clean water to children around the world by inviting individuals to donate $1 for the tap water they normally get for free at participating restaurants.
"Around the world—in places just like CAR, nearly 900 million people don't have access to safe water—but it's the kids, like the ones I met on this trip, who are the first to get sick and die from dirty water." said Joel Madden. "The good news is that we can stop this now. I believe in zero, we can reduce that 25,000 to zero."
About UNICEF For more than 60 years, UNICEF has been the world's leading international children's organization, working in over 150 countries to address the ongoing issues that affect why kids are dying. UNICEF provides lifesaving nutrition, clean water, education, protection and emergency response saving more young lives than any other humanitarian organization in the world. While millions of children die every year of preventable causes like dehydration, upper respiratory infections and measles, UNICEF, with the support of partnering organizations and donors alike, has the global experience, resources and reach to give children the best hope for survival. For more information about UNICEF, please visit, www.unicefusa.org.
For additional information, please contact: Richard Alleyne (ralleyne@unicefusa.org), U.S. Fund for UNICEF Media, 212.880.9177 |
