ReliefWeb

Key Figures

• $8M SOUGHT BY WFP TO SCALE UP FOOD SUPPORT IN EL SALVADOR

• 26% COVERAGE OF GUATEMALA'S COVID-19 RESPONSE PLAN (AS OF 8 JUNE)

ECONOMIC CONTRACTION

The World Bank anticipates that Latin America’s economy will suffer a 7.2 per cent contraction in 2020, its greatest contraction on record by nearly 5 per cent. According to these projections, the most affected countries will be Peru (12 per cent contraction), Brazil (8 per cent), Mexico (7.5 per cent), Ecuador (7.4 per cent) and Argentina (7.3 per cent). The COVID-19 crisis caught Argentina and Ecuador as they were near default, with Argentina defaulting in May and Ecuador working to avoid the same fate as it stands to lose some 600,000 jobs during the pandemic and see poverty rise by four per cent, per the Quito Chamber of Commerce. Mexico was in recession, while Brazil recorded its fourth straight year of unemployment over 10 per cent in 2019.

EL SALVADOR

Following Tropical Storms Amanda and Cristobal, which brought rainfall levels not seen since Hurricane Mitch in 1998, WFP says they require US$8 million for two months to scale up food support for more than 150,000 people at greater risk of hunger due to the collective impact of the COVID-19 crisis and the storms.

The storms, which caused flooding and landslides that damaged homes, roads and crops across El Salvador, exacerbated the pandemic's ongoing impact on the livelihood of thousands of people - Government data indicates the damage or destruction of more than 12,800 hectares of crops, incurring losses of US$5.6 million. A rapid WFP food security assessment estimates that 336,600 people in urban and rural areas could fall into severe food insecurity.

GUATEMALA

Guatemala’s COVID-19 Response Plan for $26.2 million has mobilised $6.8 million, representing 26 per cent coverage of funding needs. UN agencies account for about 30 per cent of mobilized funding ($2.1 million), while international NGO contributions make up the remainder ($4.7 million). Nearly half of the funding mobilized so far is addressing food security.

Additionally, the United States resumed deporting migrants to Guatemala on 9 June, almost a month after Guatemala stopped taking in returnees as a precaution. Official data indicates that at least 186 out of the 2,160 Guatemalans deported since midMarch tested positive for COVID-19.