COVID-19 RELIEF PROPOSAL
The entire world has been negatively affected in some way by the unprecedented global COVID-19 pandemic. Here in NYC, the situation has been as dire as it has been anywhere else in the world. More people have died in NYC from C19 than we lost in 9/11. Well over a hundred thousand have been officially diagnosed and more than 100,000 people have died all around the world as of this writing. The true infection rates are many times higher since there’s been a severe lack of testing equipment and health personnel, particularly in countries that WCF has been involved in.
In order to combat this extremely contagious and deadly disease, almost every country in the world is in some form of government lockdown and curfew with schools, businesses and tourism shut down. This has caused businesses and economies to collapse and the health care systems in even the most advanced countries are struggling. NYC's public health care system has been struggling for weeks now.
Due to the lockdowns, the economic situation for the Refugees, Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and impoverished populations has dramatically worsened. The few refugees that had menial jobs have lost their jobs. Most governments had already run out of goodwill and money for their refugee populations before the crisis and now cannot properly take care of their own citizens. Countries that previously provided minimum support for refugees have now had to pull back and are actively asking NGOs to help fill in the gaps. Even host populations are suffering greatly now, particularly those below the poverty line.
In addition, giving for international ministry has dropped dramatically since the crisis began due to the dramatic negative impact on Western economies and traditional donors. This has combined to make a doubly negative impact on vulnerable populations worldwide. These people are the ones with the least protections and the least means to survive. Although America is facing unprecedented challenges, we at least have a social net that is now being activated. For the refugee, internally displaced and extreme poor – they have literally nothing.
WCF has historically collaborated with overseas, mostly indigenous partners that have a strong history of compassion for the most vulnerable people. We have been discussing how we can collectively help and based on the universal needs expressed, we have determined that day to day survival has become the most important objective of all the families that we are ministering to. This pandemic has had the same effect on these families as a natural disaster or a war. This is not an issue of longer term development, but of immediate relief – what will a family eat today? We have collectively decided that a monthly Hygiene and Food Care Kit will help these families get through the most critical and dangerous phase of this crisis. The hygiene part of Care Kits will include disinfectant products, masks, gloves, sanitizer, and any other available items that will help with prevention. The food part will include basic food supplies such as rice, beans, flour, cooking oil, water and canned foods. The supplies will be sourced from within the local economy.
We already have a humanitarian Food/Nutrition program in Haiti and India and we are now collaborating with our partners to help with Hygiene and Food Care Kits to their communities where it is safe to do so. In addition, our ministry friends in other countries are working on doing the same - Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Pakistan and Turkey.
These Hygiene/Food Care Kits generally will cost around $50 - $75 for a month's supply for a family of 4 - 6 people. Special project pages are now setup for you to join us. We've committed to using our general funds to start. Please visit our general Humanitarian web pages for more information.
God bless and protect you during this crisis
