Irish charity appeal for help in fight to stem the spread of COVID-19 in world’s poorest countries
WITH thoughts of the Coronavirus in the minds of everyone across Ireland, a leading Irish charity has urged people to also remember the plight of those living in abject poverty in some of the worlds poorest countries.
World Vision Ireland, a child-focussed overseas aid agency aligned to the largest privately funded NGO in the world, delivers clean water, education, healthcare and sanitation to more than 120 million children in almost 100 countries across the globe.
World Vision Ireland CEO Niall McLoughlin said they were deeply concerned about the likely impact the COVID-19 pandemic will have on vulnerable children around the world.
In response to this concern the charity is appealing for the Irish public to help fund its three programming priorities: promoting preventative measures to inhibit the spread of the Coronavirus, supporting health systems and workers and helping children direct impacted by COVID-19.
Mr McLoughlin pointed out that, for example, wealthy countries typically have 2 – 12 beds per 1,000 people, as compared to the 1 bed per 1,000 head of population in the worlds poorest nations
“World Vision Ireland has emphasized that a global effort is needed to stop the Covid-19 pandemic, and that children in extreme poverty are always the most vulnerable in a crisis,” he said.
“When children living in poorer countries lose loved ones, they risk ending up in unsafe situations. Often times, they must engage in child labour to survive; see their families sink into poverty; or suffer isolation and psychological harm.”
The charity plans to reach 11 million people in their 17-priority country response, to flatten the curve.
Mr McLoughlin said the charity has set a target of reaching 11 million people in their 17 priority countries in an attempt to flatten the Civid-19 curve.
“This includes children whose families have serious underlying health conditions and are already battling tuberculosis, pneumonia, malaria, HIV and AIDS, in communities with high rates of malnutrition. Children in extreme poverty are living where health facilities are poorly equipped, lack isolation facilities and intensive care and respiratory equipment,” he said.
“Millions of refugees and displaced people are also living in large, overcrowded, often unhygienic areas, with limited access to medical care. Our worst nightmare is this virus taking hold in these conditions, because it will spread rapidly and there won’t be sufficient resources to flatten the curve.”
He pointed out that World vision has gained huge experience and expertise in helping communities across the globe prepare for and respond to different virus outbreaks. These include combating the spread of Ebola in Africa and Zika in Latin America, educating thousands of communities about the importance of hand hygiene, basic health care, and disease control.
“Responding to the Coronavirus is going to take the same kind of experience. A key approach for World Vision all around the world has been to partner with leaders who are trusted by communities. We train leaders who then share effective health messages in their communities,” said Mr McLoughlin.
“Failure to do this can lead to rumours and misinformation quickly spreading, which then hampers efforts to slow the spread of a disease. If we don’t tackle the Covid-19 pandemic at a global level, it will be far more difficult to treat at a national level,” he warned.
Mr McLoughlin said urged people to help World Vision in its efforts by donating what they can to www.worldvision.ie/ways-to-give/ Children-in-Emergencies.