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Ethiopia: COVID-19 Humanitarian impact - Situation Update No. 07, As of 18 June 2020

Attachments

This report is prepared under the auspices of the National Emergency Coordination Center for COVID-19 response, led by the National Disaster Risk Management Commission (NDRMC), supported by OCHA Ethiopia with participation of Cluster Coordinators. It covers the period from 5 - 18 June 2020.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • As of 18 June, Ethiopia reports 3,954 confirmed COVID-19 cases compared to 1,636 on 4 June. The cumulative number of people recovered has reached 934, while the number of deaths has increased to 65. Cases have increased exponentially in the last two weeks, with Addis Ababa counting a total of 2,877 cases. (Source: MoH/Ethiopia Public Health Institute, EPHI).

  • On 6 June, the first confirmed case of COVID-19 was reported in Gambela region, while on 10 June, the first case of COVID-19 amongst the refugee population in Ethiopia was reported in Adi Harush camp, Tigray region. The camp hosts some 33,928 Eritrean refugees, and four cases have been confirmed so far.

  • From June 15 – 20, the National Emergency Coordination Center (ECC) in cooperation with line Ministries, regional governments, and humanitarian partners conducted a multi-cluster assessment in quarantine centers (QCs) and points of entries (POEs) in seven regions. Other regions will be covered in future.

  • On 10 June, in a meeting at the ECC, Government called on partners to scale up efforts to decongest IDP camps and improve basic water and hygiene, as part of COVID-19 response. The International Office for Migration’s Site Management Support has finalized a position paper on emergency decongestion of IDP sites (link: https://www.humanitarianresponse.info/en/operations/ethiopia/covid-19).

  • On 12 June, in a public statement, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed warned the public that Ethiopia is “yet to see the worst of COVID-19 pandemic during the kiremt season (June - September), and called on all members of society to stand in solidarity in the effort to control the worsening COVID-19 pandemic”.

  • Government and partners are scaling-up risk communication and community engagement (RCCE) interventions, such as dissemination of messaging on the impact of COVID-19 on women as well as prevention tips catered for women’s needs and other risk communication activities. IOM alone reached more than 1,175,000 IDPs, returnees and host community through door-to-door sensitization, mobile van messaging, and sensitization during distributions.

  • On 9 June, the National Disaster Risk Management Commission (NDRMC) Commissioner and the Humanitarian Coordinator for Ethiopia released a revised 2020 humanitarian requirement outlining additional humanitarian priorities since the release of the 2020 Humanitarian Response Plan on 28 January. The spike in humanitarian needs is mainly due to COVID-19-related multi-sector impact. The revised requirement of US$1.65 billion seeks to address the needs of 16.5 million people, including 9.8 million targeted for COVID-19-related interventions at a cost of $506 million.

  • Globally, the COVID-19 Global Humanitarian Response Plan (GHRP) launched in March, covering the period April – December 2020, requests some $7.27 Billion, $506 million of which for Ethiopia, and as of 19 June has received some $1.32 Bn (18.2 per cent). Please check for further updates: https://fts.unocha.org/appeals/952/summary.

  • The European Union and its member states have mobilized €487 million to support the Ethiopian Health System, to improve quarantine sites, social protection enhancement, livelihood recovery, and strengthen Ethiopia’s economy.

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