Staff Reporter :
Six leading humanitarian agencies in Bangladesh have joined forces to overcome the escalating COVID-19 crisis in the country.
The consortium, made up of Plan International Bangladesh, Save the Children, CARE Bangladesh, Oxfam, World Vision and Caritas Bangladesh, plans to slow the spread of COVID-19 by increasing health services and improving access and delivery of water, sanitation and hygiene programmes for vulnerable communities.
The COVID-19 outbreak, declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation on Jan 30, is a huge concern for vulnerable communities in Bangladesh – including the Rohingya population living in refugee camps, host communities in Cox’s Bazar, and the people living in the disaster prone areas in the country, the agencies said in a joint statement. More than 1.3 million people are in need of aid in Cox’s Bazar, including the Rohingya refugees and 444,000 in the host communities, according to the agencies.
Although no cases of COVID-19 have been confirmed in the camps, congested and unhygienic living conditions, limited access to clean water and hygiene materials, as well as lack of adequate health facilities have increased the potential for the rapid spread of the disease – both in the camps and in host communities.
“Humanitarian experts are concerned about a dual emergency, as the monsoon season approaches. Floods or cyclones combined with the emergence of deadly COVID-19 will cause a ‘crisis within a crisis’ and hasten the spread of the virus.”
The initiative forms part of the Australian Humanitarian Partnership – a partnership between the Australian Government and humanitarian agencies, through which the partners aim to save lives, alleviate suffering and enhance human dignity in the face of conflict, disasters and other humanitarian crises.
With the funding from Australian Government, the six humanitarian agencies have been distinctly operating long-term development and humanitarian programmes in Bangladesh and have recently pivoted to responding to COVID-19 in the region.
The aid agencies are focused on the prevention of the disease, by raising community awareness, distributing of hygiene kits, promoting hygiene and hand washing practices, installing clean water points, distributing cash and vouchers, promoting positive parenting and special care for the elderly and persons with disability, child protection, sexual and reproductive health services and distributing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).
To reduce the potential impact of COVID19 in vulnerable communities, Plan International Bangladesh has allocated $530,000 AUD (Tk 29 million) to support 72,000 people, in particular – children, girls, young women, the elderly, people living with chronic illness, and people living with disabilities in Cox’s Bazar and Kurigram districts- with cash distribution, distant education, child protection, distribution of hygiene kits and PPE, dissemination of awareness messages and also case management programme specifically in Rohingya camps.
Save the Children has planned to deliver COVID-19 response activities worth $500,000 AUD (Tk 27 million) to 47,000 Rohingya refugees and their host population including the running and staffing of seven health centres, and implementing Community Case Management programs, while CARE Bangladesh’s efforts have reached around 12,000 people under the current projects funded by the Australian Government.
Oxfam has already planned to allocate around $272,000 AUD (Tk 15 million) to support 30,000 Rohingya refugees in the camp during the COVID-19 outbreak.
World Vision Bangladesh has also planned to allocate $500,000 AUD (Tk 27 million) to extend COVID19 prevention support to 26,965 Rohingya refugees and the host community population.
Caritas as part of CAN Do network allocated about $400,000 AUD (Tk 22.24 million) to conduct community awareness, distribute hand sanitiser, masks, disinfectants and PPE; promote handwashing facilities and hygiene practices; provide unconditional cash and support the health systems.
All six aid agencies are scaling up the activities in a three-year consortium programme of $44 million AUD supported by the Australian Government and implemented through the Australian Humanitarian Partnership which will meet the humanitarian and protection needs.
The consortium aid agencies will provide primary education and protection services for vulnerable populations in the region. A strong health component will support the wellbeing and protection of the communities to deal with the adverse effects of the global pandemic.
The programme will also invest in activities which support the ability of Rohingya refugees and host communities, and individuals, to be more self-reliant.
Through this consortium programme, the aid agencies are also working together to improve the humanitarian system in terms of localisation, accountability to affected populations, collaborative engagement, and coordinated engagement with external actors.
The AHP-supported consortium supports Australia’s wider efforts to assist crisis-affected people.
Australia is focusing its efforts in Bangladesh in areas where Australia can make a difference and where its resources can most effectively and efficiently be deployed.
Since 2017, Australian funding has assisted Bangladesh to lead the humanitarian response in Cox’s Bazar.
The funding has benefited over 48,000 children and improved access to clean drinking water, shelter and health CARE to those impacted by the crisis.
During the COVID19 pandemic also, Australian Aid assistance continued to support the vulnerable people in Bangladesh to provide life-saving resources and community education in hygiene to slow the spread of COVID-19.
