ReliefWeb

Significant efforts are being made by African governments to respond to the pandemic; however, the number of cases has been increasing exponentially, with the caseload doubling to 10,000 in a week.

World Vision’s Aftershocks report considers what would happen if the secondary impacts of the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak on children were replicated in the 24 most fragile countries covered by the UN appeal.

Libya recorded its first case of COVID-19 on March 24. Security challenges are now coupled with grave health concerns posed by the potential spread of the virus, especially in detention centres.

WFP is planning to assist 4.1 million people in April, although insufficient funding has prevented it achieving the same monthly target this year. In March, it reached 3.7 million of the most vulnerable.

Living in crowded conditions, without adequate access to water and sanitation, and with precarious livelihoods and food security, refugees are particularly vulnerable to the virus.

Hundreds of Venezuelans are returning home as lockdown measures prevent them from earning a living. More could follow without an increase in funding for the Colombian government’s pandemic response.

More lives are at risk in the Centre Nord and Sahel regions where hundreds of thousands of displaced people, including small children, are being forced to sleep in the open at the mercy of the elements.

The IFRC issued cash grant to the Vanuatu Red Cross to assist with the deployment of staff and volunteers as well as further the movement of prepositioned stocks closer to areas likely to be affected.