CARE PACKAGE® for Emergencies

An orange CARE emergency kit that can be worn as a backpack.

Weighing only 30 pounds, this package can meet the physical needs of a family of four for one month.

Impact Magazine: Issue 32

Transforming and streamlining aid delivery

When disaster hits, every second counts. Just as the need for aid increases, however, delivering it becomes incredibly challenging – with roads damaged, supply chains disrupted, and circumstances shifting rapidly. Families who receive aid can only carry so many items, making it difficult for them to get the support they need.

To streamline aid delivery, CARE has developed the CARE PACKAGE® for Emergencies in partnership with T-Works, India’s largest prototyping center. Building off our original CARE PACKAGE, the CARE PACKAGE for Emergencies is a compact disaster kit. With over 30 essential items, the CARE PACKAGE for Emergencies can help a family of four meet their shelter, kitchen, water, and hygiene needs for an entire month. It combines light, customizable kits in a portable container that can be positioned ahead of time in areas prone to disasters.

An illustration of hygiene and cooking materials, including a toothbrush, toothpaste, nailclippers, underwear, a pot, and silverware.
An illustrated example of what's included in a CARE PACKAGE for Emergencies. Items include a hygiene kit, cooking kit, water kit, and solar kit.

The CARE PACKAGE for Emergencies is being piloted in South Asia with more testing planned in Southeast Asia and Southern Africa. CARE is proud to be a trailblazer in this space, helping to transform the way lifesaving assistance is delivered.

Over the last 50 years, natural disasters have increased fivefold, in large part because of climate change. But cyclones, hurricanes, and seasonal weather events tend to strike the same locations regularly, so making it possible to prepare for repeated emergencies can mitigate the effects of disasters. Advance preparation is a sound investment: every $1 spent on preparedness saves $6 in disaster response.