Middle East and Eastern Europe Regional Office (MEERO)

I have the privilege of championing the work of World Vision Australia in two regions: Latin America & Caribbean (LAC) and Middle East and Eastern Europe (MEER). Here's a short introduction to what we call MEER:

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The countries where World Vision works across the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Caucasus and Southern Asia region are of huge geopolitical significance.

This is a region where the children, families and communities face staggering challenges every day—challenges that all too inevitably force some children to grow up too fast while not allowing others to grow up at all.

While there are differences in the struggles faced by the children and their families depending, in part, by what country they call home, there similarities as well. Across the region, World Vision is working to provide millions of children: with access to a quality and affordable education and health services as well as knowledge of their rights and a means to protect themselves from those who would exploit them. At the same time, World Vision strives to come alongside parents and community members equipping them to be able to provide for their children’s physical, spiritual, intellectual, and emotional needs regardless of ethnicity, gender or religious beliefs both now and in the future.

World Vision’s work in this region is divided into four clusters of countries:

• The Balkans: Serbia and Montenegro, Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo and Romania 
• The Caucasus: Georgia, Armenia, and Azerbaijan
• The Middle East: Jerusalem and West Bank, Lebanon and Jordan
• Southern Asia: Afghanistan and Pakistan

At present, World Vision is working in more than 1,500 communities across the region striving to improve the lives of nearly 10 million children and youth.