COVID Response - March

Dear Sir/Madame, Our fears are many, as we see the virus spread across our nation. Villages are overwhelmed and at a loss as to how to protect themselves. With your support Lifewater was able to come alongside and bring them help by providing lessons on how to prevent the spread of the disease; how and when to wash hands as well as explanations of COVID symptoms. The provision of extra water points in many towns also lessen how many people access each well making social distancing possible. In so many ways lives have been blessed and we are very grateful for the help given to us to try to survive this crisis. It is a scary time in our nation but you have given us help and hope. Thank you Stephen Varfee Lifewater Program Coordinator

The global impact of this pandemic reminds us that we are truly living in a global village. Our “neighbour” is no longer just the person living next door, but includes everyone, everywhere. We cannot disconnect ourselves from the plight of women and girls who can't socially distance as they draw water from crowded pumps; and we cannot ignore children who can’t frequently wash their hands because water takes so much time to fetch. Lifewater Canada’s response to the COVID-19 outbreak began in early March, 2020. Lifewater Liberia Inc (L-Linc) proactively took a position of leadership starting work early to prevent the spread of COVID-19 when there were just a few known cases in the country. The first, and most important, step was to make people aware of the problem and teach them how to protect themselves in a sustainable way. Hygiene education material was updated to include information on Covid-19. Large workshops with meals were replaced with socially distant small-group training of locally influential men and women. Workshop participants were taught how to: Effectively wash their hands;Simply disinfect pump handles and buckets;Change traditional practices so that two-metre distances are maintained while waiting in line at pumps, while still allowing for rejuvinating converstaion and culturally important exchange of news;Monitor the health of family and neighbours so that people with possible COVID symptons can be quickly isolated from close contact with others.Less than a decade ago, Liberia was the epicenter of the worlds worst-ever Ebola outbreak. People have not forgot the seemingly unstoppable spread and the suffering and death that followed. Many Liberian people are scared with a ominous sense of Deja vu. But with your help and support, they now have the capacity to understand COVID and have clear actions that will help prevent it from devastating their country. Thank-you!