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Dear John,
As the COVID-19 pandemic accelerates in crisis zones, your support has been essential to refugees and displaced families. I wanted to share with you a look at your generosity in action.
With you by our side, we've been able to reach vulnerable families in countries like Syria, Afghanistan and Greece and provide them with the critical aid they need to protect themselves from the virus.
In overcrowded refugee camps, where social distancing is nearly impossible, we've worked around the clock to install hand-washing stations, distribute emergency hygiene kits and set up triage and virus screening stations.
We've trained our frontline health workers to identify and treat symptoms of COVID-19, while ensuring they have the protective gear to respond safely.
Here are ways we are taking action to combat the spread of the virus:
- In Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, which hosts the world's largest refugee camp, 62,148 community members have received COVID-19 awareness-raising messages since the beginning of our COVID-19 response.
- In Yemen, where a majority of the population is in need of humanitarian aid, the IRC has provided cash distribution for 281 internally displaced households while adhering to protective procedures and social distancing protocols. The IRC's mobile health teams, nutrition services and hygiene awareness campaigns are ongoing, reaching more than 2,000 individuals.
- In Cúcuta, Colombia, the IRC health center has expanded health services to meet the increase in patients. We are also maintaining medical consultations for migrants arriving at the border with Venezuela. Medical health services (primary health care, antenatal care and family planning) as well as telemedicine services are being provided at a mobile clinic near the border. The IRC's health team has reached more than 2,000 individuals during April and May, mainly women.
- In El Salvador, lifesaving cash has been distributed to 287 women who are survivors of, or at high risk of, gender-based violence. The IRC has delivered 200 basic-needs kits, 100 hygiene kits for female and 100 hygiene kits for male returnees, who were recently deported from the US and being held in quarantine centers.
Your support is all the more critical now as vulnerable people face the secondary impacts of the pandemic, including skyrocketing food prices, job and income losses and spikes in gender-based violence. Our teams on the ground are working to adapt and expand our programs as situations evolve and new crises emerge.
Simply put: we couldn't do this work without you. Thank you for supporting refugees and displaced families worldwide.
With humanity,
Emily Martin
Director, USA Digital Fundraising
International Rescue Committee |
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