The Church in Singapore is gearing up to deliver a comprehensive response to international humanitarian needs.

Archbishop Nicholas Chia of Singapore on Aug. 20 launched Caritas Humanitarian Aid and Relief Initiatives Singapore (CHARIS), his archdiocese’s umbrella body for overseas aid.

Archbishop Chia said the creation of CHARIS was the result of much reflection. “We are fortunate in Singapore where there is economic growth and prosperity,” he said during the launch. However, “There are also many more of our neighbors… in greater need, especially those impacted by disasters,” he said.

CHARIS will provide a direct response to disaster situations as well as general support for other humanitarian situations, said Willie Cheng, its chairman.

One of CHARIS’ first acts, even before its launch, was to aid Caritas Pakistan for the devastating floods. CHARIS gave Pakistan Catholic Church’s social service agency US$50,000 and arranged for the delivery of 816 water filtration units.

Lesley-Anne Knight, Secretary General of Caritas Internationalis, applauded the creation of CHARIS and its entrance into the confederation of 165 Catholic relief, development and social service organizations around the world. In becoming part of the confederation, the Singapore Church has become a global Catholic citizen, she said.

With the creation of CHARIS, Singapore archdiocese now has in place a social service structure similar to CAFOD, the official Catholic aid agency for England and Wales and Catholic Relief Services in the United States.

CHARIS will complement the work of Caritas Singapore, which focuses on helping the poor within the country.

It takes over and expands on the role of the Archdiocesan Crisis Coordination Team which was formed to disburse 1.5 million Singapore dollars (US$I.10 million) collected by the Church in Singapore to help those displaced by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

With the Java earthquake in 2005 and other natural disasters, the team remained active and became the vehicle for the archdiocese’s response to all natural disasters.

CHARIS will also have programs to mobilize and help form Catholics for overseas mission work.

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