OVERCROWDED AND UNDERPREPARED
Coronavirus arrives in refugee communities
While New Zealand looks towards a post-COVID-19 future, tightlypacked refugee communities are facing devastation. Without the basics of soap and safe running water, there will be catastrophic human toll.
The dire conditions of the world’s refugee settlements put lives at risk every day. Often squalid, overcrowded and lacking even the most basic amenities, these makeshift shelters are already breeding grounds for disease.
With nowhere else to go, families fleeing war and violence have been pushed into cramped communities with limited access to the very basics.
World Vision are dedicated to supporting these communities by providing safe running water, soap and medical supplies. But they are under resourced to confront the growing hunger, sanitation and health crisis. Coronavirus has brought millions of vulnerable families into direct and present danger.
Coronavirus is spreading across the globe, killing with impunity. Here in New Zealand that spread is being slowed by self-isolation, social distancing and diligent hygiene. That’s the only way that we can flatten the curve and protect our population. But in communities from Syria, Afghanistan, Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and elsewhere, there is no escape, no self-isolation, no social distancing. Coronavirus could decimate the population of already vulnerable families.
We are making progress in NZ to slow the spread of Coronavirus. But this virus knows no borders. As COVID-19 continues to spread around the world, it is essential to act now to save lives.