Our Coverages/Supports for COVID-19 Response

Apeal from ESDO

WHO have declared COVID-19 which as a pandemic on 30 January 2020. Among the whole world 192 countries and territories around 2,467,524 people (up to 20 April 2020) has been affected by the Corona virus or COVID-19. 169,398People (up to 20 April 2020) (https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/) have already died and still 1,653,537 cases (up to 20 April 2020) (https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/) are in a danger position. It is now the most worldwide epidemic around the world for its nature and impact. World Health Organization (WHO) has already been declared it’s a world pandemic disease which has yet no medicine to cure. Bangladesh is also among the affected countries. According to Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) 2,948 cases are caught in countrywide and 101 people has been died (up to 20 April 2020) due to the effect of Crone Virus . WHO, IEDCR and Govt. of Bangladesh has already declared red alarming for all the people of Bangladesh and take many awareness raising necessary steps to protect against the effect of Corona Virus. But still this is not enough due to extreme pandemic/ countrywide outbreaks of Corona Virus. In recent times around 1 lakh 72 thousand immigrants has come to in Bangladesh among them only 17 thousand people are in Home Courantyne. Day by day the cases of corona affected is increasing and many more corona affected news are coming from different parts of the country. The epidemic could not give time to prepare for obtaining equipment or medical facilities and lack of awareness among the people.

The opinion from the virologist expert said that the status of corona virus in Bangladesh is in 2nd phase i.e. confined within only the immigrant of Bangladeshis and those associating with them. But it may have gone into 3rd phase – there are not enough tests done to know the exact state. So it is a big challenging issues as like the others parts of the world. Now to confine further infection by the Corona Virus and its malignant effect in the human body is the highly concern issue for community level.

According to the London Imperial College recent research Lock down are saving Till last march 59000 peoples life of 11 countries have saved due to lock down. On the other hand a report of DW academy shows the effect of lockdown to the economy is severe. Specially the county where the social safety net is not applicable for all aged and class people and the counties in which the manual labour are the main source of GDP are seriously affected by the lock down. The like Bangladesh is about 4.9% people are unemployment and 59% are daily labour (https://www.ceicdata.com/en/indicator/bangladesh/labour-force-participation-rate) is in very risky position now. In the Global Humanitarian Response Plan for COVID-19, the UN Secretary General highlighted the need to protect the most vulnerable communities in society who will be severely affected during this time.

The COVID-19 response, including the general special leave declared by the government from 26 March to 25 April in Bangladesh is already impacting some of the most vulnerable groups in the country like ethnic community groups, dalits, low income families, people with disabilities, returnee migrant workers, informal and low wage earners such as daily labourers, women headed household, transgender and sex worker and tea plantation workers. Loss off income will have broader implications on areas such as food security, WASH, protection, health and education.More than 52% of the people have indicated that they have not received any support since lockdown/ movement restrictions (26 March 2020) were put in place.

As restrictions continue, further impact food production and supply chains, the most vulnerable groups will be a challenges of food availability and diversity – with considerable implications for nutrition needs. Due to loss of daily work, migrant workers will likely return to their communities, which will have a number of broader social and economic implications. Protection and safety issues such as domestic and intimate partner violence and child exploitation will likely increase and become compounded by factors such as loss of income, school closures, returning migrant workers, communities remaining under lockdown for prolonged periods, and inability to access regular safety and support mechanisms. Maternal mortality will likely increase with lack of necessary PPE reducing the availability of skilled midwives, and mother sopting for homebirths due to safety worries and social stigma. Women, girls and female headed households are likely to face more severe impacts during the ongoing situation. LGBTIQ+ groups, especially those who do not have an adequate support structure within their communities remain at high risk during this period. There will be a significant impact on the private sector, especially SMEs and export sector, resulting in a snow ball effect to the communities linked to them. The upcoming cyclone and monsoon seasons (and resulting flooding and landslides) will further increase the vulnerability of at-risk groups.

On the basis of the county disaster impact scenario, there are 10 districts which experiences severe impact of monsoon flood and other 20 districts also impacted by regular monsoon flood. In terms of cyclone there are four districts which impacted severely cyclone and landslide more than one time in last six years. On the other hand coastal 15 districts has experiences cyclonic wind and had to moved to shelter due to high danger signal of cyclone. The flash flood also had potentially sever impact in 07 districts of Haor region. As forecasted by BMD, it is anticipated that these highly impacted districts could be impacted this year.

Food Security & Livelihood

Government declared government holiday as a way to shutdown movement nationally from 26 March to 25 April. Moreover with home quarantining being enforced in all districts, the most affected livelihood is characterized by low-income and variable nature. This includes daily labour, rickshaw pullers, temporary and domestic helpers among others. Without income this group of individuals are facing a significant financial burden to obtain the most essential human needs such as food. Govt. have allocated 100 mt ton rice in each district but the food distribution is not equal. Due to govt. huge work load the distribution of food is not conducting properly. In the meantime the allocation of the food is not enough.

Key Data Demographic dimensions play a key role in determining vulnerability of people, not only in terms of susceptibility to COVID-19, but also in terms of the socio-economic impacts they will face during this period. Some of the main determinants include, age (65+ years), sex, populations living in slums, low income households, impact on women garment workers; people living with disabilities as well as people in ethnic communities. People in higher density areas increase the risk of being affected .Bangladesh has a high population density with more than 1100 people living in per square kilometre. Older people in terms of protection, access to services and aid due to the socio-physical obstacles to key services .Fatality risks (27-30% of affected population) of elderly population is higher than others. Floating population has higher risks of exposure to virus. There are 0.15 million floating population and 2.6 million slum dwellers in Bangladesh. Unsustainable livelihood such as rickshaw pullers, small street tea stall workers, street fruits/vegetables sellers etc. may lose their income due to lockdown situation. Majority people from this livelihood group depend on day to day income. These livelihood group tends to have no savings. Ethnic population are likely to be poor and more vulnerable in terms of physical, social and economic capital .Less accessibility to basic service and living in the hard to reach areas. Depends on unsustainable income sources .Tends to be less educated and has very high vulnerability to any kind of shocks.

In whole Bangladesh 2.2 million people live below the poverty line. Among all 64 district the top ten poverty prone districts are- Kurigram district is the number one of the poorest districts in Bangladesh. 70.8% people is poor in this district. Dinajpur district is the number two poorest districts of Bangladesh. 64.3 % people is poor in this district. Bandarban is number three poorest districts in Bangladesh. 63.2% of the people in this district are poor. Magura district is ranked number four among the poorest districts. 56.7% people is poor in this district. kishorganj district is ranked number five among the poorest districts. 52.5% people is poor in this district. Khagrachari district is ranked number six among the poorest districts. 46.7% people is poor in this district. Jamalpur district is ranked number seven among the poorest districts. 43.8% people is poor in this district. Gaibandha district is ranked number eight among the poorest districts. 46.7% people is poor in this district. Rangpur district is ranked number Nine among the poorest districts. 43.8% people is poor in this district. Lalmonirhat district is ranked number ten among the poorest districts. 42% people is poor in this district. In nationally where there 15.1% people are involved in salaried job but in this poverty prone areas there average 7.25% people are involved in salaried job. More than 22% people involved in agri labour. But important thing is they are migrated labour. In the harvesting season they migrate to the southern part of the country for the agri work. Due to the lockdown/ staying at home, agriculture dependent labourers are not be able to move to the other regions for their livelihood. There are about 7.2 million agricultural labourers in the country who has no alternate limited income since 26 of March. Rangpur Division has the highest number of agricultural labourers.

Support vulnerable group with Minimum Food Basket (in kind) and the remaining of the Minimum Expenditure basket in cash. According to NAWG report only 16% reported that they have food stock and 91% people don’t have sufficient money to buy food; markets are not functioning and preferred items are not available. Immediate intervention to ensure fair price for the producer to protect the agriculture as a whole to minimize the risk and vulnerability. Otherwise this group will become vulnerable and risk to be added as vulnerable grope for food and livelihood assistance. Particularly for perishable items like vegetable, milk, egg, poultry etc

Ensure livelihood. Ensure agriculture production .Promote local verity of seeds, fertilizer and agricultural practices. Ensure agriculture, poultry, fisheries, livestock production. Support the Supply chain for food, trade and agricultural inputs. Support the value chain of agricultural products. Market monitoring and ensure market functionality. Ensuring access and availability of key agricultural inputs (seeds, labor, fertilizer, machinery, etc), by keeping input supply chains functioning to ensure timely production for the planting season coming up and providing special permits for migrant labor; Continuation of Food Assistance for the extremely vulnerable group with MEB .Working with food logistics companies to develop health screening protocols and providing targeted, time bound and transparent incentives to hire workers to maintain food transport and logistics, including deliveries to remote and needy areas; Reviewing regulations to permit closed food service establishments (restaurants, food centers, ecommerce companies) to redeploy their equipment and assets to deliver essential foods to areas needing it the most; Supporting informal and formal food-related Small and Medium Enterprises to maintain cash flow and survive potentially catastrophic drops in demand so they can recover when the crisis is over.

ESDO who have direct intervention in most vulnerable 49 district have support the community 90925 KG rice, 24554 KG Potato, 13884.50 KG lentils, 1384.5 LTR mustered oil, 2384.50 KG salt and 8,750,000 BDT with the support of UNDP, DFID/MJF, HEKS/EPER, Educo and from own fund. But it’s not enough ESD have reached to 5000 HH with this food and cash support . As per ESDO need assessment more than 1 million people of its working area needs immediate support that for need at least 450,000,000 BDT as per SPHERE standard food support (4500 BDT per HH). Please raise your hand for the sake of the humanity. Please come and stand aside to ESDO. ESDO have root level access to reach to the remote community.

Wash and Health

As per WHO’s guidelines, WASH practices are essential in ensuring the control of the disease. Regular washing of hands or use of sanitizers are significant in preventing the infection from entering, in addition to abiding by proper etiquette in sneezing and coughing. . Unsafe hygiene practices at household level increase risks.About 15% people don’t have safe sanitation, and about 50% people don’t follow proper hand wash related hygiene. About 8% population use open space as toilets. The country’s MICS 2019 report suggests that only 74% of households have basic handwashing practices, with the percentage dropping to 44.2% when considering households under poverty (as per Wealth Index quintile) – WASH practices and facilities in rural populations, those from low income households, are therefore important for prevention and control

Resource Mobilization. Communication and social mobilization. Awareness among the mass communities on how to prevent the Covid-19, how to protect family members and the community from the transmission of Novel Corona Virus, the importance of social distancing, handwashing with soap home quarantine etc. Awareness raising through posters/leaflets, radio communication and hand mikes, smart phone messaging, and other online means of dissemination also maintaining the PPE if in person. Engage elected political leaders i.e. Union Parishad Chairperson, local elites, religious leaders like imams to follow the messages to protect COVID 19. Disseminate hygiene messages to reduce water borne diseases. Do’s and don’ts in COVID 19 . Hygiene Promotion and awareness i.e. handwashing in every two hours (even when home quarantine)as campaigning in the media. Adequate Hand washing station with soap particularly in and around slum area, who does not have facilities. Rehabilitation of water points, tube wells and latrines, water treatment plans. Adequate WASH facilities in the Health care facility. Hygiene kits including dignity kits distribution. Utilization of school colleges for the period of treatment. Doctors and volunteers to be deployed to the affected areas. Community Volunteers to be trained up how to use PPE and manage those. Inclusive WASH facilities for person with disability and elderly people. Establish systems of solid waste management. Installation of temporary hand washing station. Installation of temporary water points and latrine.

Provide support to Government for the purchase of bleaching powder (granular chlorine) for Bucket chlorination, hand pump sanitization and environmental cleanliness . Assist Government to ensure continuity of Water Supply and garbage collection systems of each WASA, City Cooperation and Municipality. Developing maintenance protocol and training TW tube well mechanics on chlorination of existing water points; Behavior change communication to introduce handwashing before water collection to avoid minimize contamination of through the hand pump handle. Unconditional cash grants to meet WASH related needs of the communities based on the context of the next six months. PPE for the community volunteers (simplified PPE) . Duty of care for staff and volunteer

ESDO who have direct intervention in most vulnerable 49 district have support the community by 120800 leaflet distribution, 240 Banner Installed, 953 miking in community level, 28000 Postering, 40 Hand wash Demonstration,400 hand washing station, 120 temporary hand washing station, 800 PPE use guideline to health service providing agencies, 120 awareness rising song dissemination, 6256 Bucket and Mug distribution, disinfection 400 times, 71555 hand washing soap distribution, 80 distance circling, 30233 kg detergent powder distribution, 27530 reusable mask distribution, 11000 hexisol distribution, 16022 hand sanitizer distribution, 4046 items PPE to health service provider with the support of Start Fund/DFID, UNDP, DFID/MJF, HEKS/EPER, Educo and from own fund. But it’s not enough ESDO have reached to

2,40,000 people with leaflet , 2511 HH/12560 people through Hygiene kit with IEC Materials, 80,000 people through Miking, 80,000 people through Temporary billbard , 20000 people through hand Washing demonstration , 205071 people through TV song, 1213 doctor and health service providers=Total 642197. . As per ESDO need assessment more than 8 million people of its working area needs immediate support that for need at least 67,381,881 BDT as per WASH Cluster standard Hygine kit support (2135 BDT per HH). Please raise your hand for the sake of the humanity. Please come and stand aside to ESDO. ESDO have root level access to reach to the remote community.

WHO have declared COVID-19 which as a pandemic on 30 January 2020. Among the whole world 192 countries and territories around 2,467,524 people (up to 20 April 2020) has been affected by the Corona virus or COVID-19. 169,398People (up to 20 April 2020) (https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/) have already died and still 1,653,537 cases (up to 20 April 2020) (https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/) are in a danger position. It is now the most worldwide epidemic around the world for its nature and impact. World Health Organization (WHO) has already been declared it’s a world pandemic disease which has yet no medicine to cure. Bangladesh is also among the affected countries. According to Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) 2,948 cases are caught in countrywide and 101 people has been died (up to 20 April 2020) due to the effect of Crone Virus . WHO, IEDCR and Govt. of Bangladesh has already declared red alarming for all the people of Bangladesh and take many awareness raising necessary steps to protect against the effect of Corona Virus. But still this is not enough due to extreme pandemic/ countrywide outbreaks of Corona Virus. In recent times around 1 lakh 72 thousand immigrants has come to in Bangladesh among them only 17 thousand people are in Home Courantyne. Day by day the cases of corona affected is increasing and many more corona affected news are coming from different parts of the country. The epidemic could not give time to prepare for obtaining equipment or medical facilities and lack of awareness among the people.

The opinion from the virologist expert said that the status of corona virus in Bangladesh is in 2nd phase i.e. confined within only the immigrant of Bangladeshis and those associating with them. But it may have gone into 3rd phase – there are not enough tests done to know the exact state. So it is a big challenging issues as like the others parts of the world. Now to confine further infection by the Corona Virus and its malignant effect in the human body is the highly concern issue for community level.

However, the virus transmission being highly contagious is the main concern in terms of health; It is important to have numerous testing in a community, especially those at high risk. Unfortunately, Bangladesh now has limited test kits available and there has few centers for testing COVID 19 testing available in outside capital. Although, the outbreak started in the country through returnees form foreign countries, the local transmission is now proportionately dominating – where transmission has occurred by association with imported cases of the infection. In whole country there has only 800 ventilator are available.

One of the pathetic factor is doctors and health service provider who are the front line fighter agaist COVID 19 are not well secured. They have not enough PPE items available . They are using reusable PPE who is one of the risky factor for their contamination. Till date one doctor have died more than 54 doctors and 100 nurse are affected already. If this trend continue the health faucitis will collapsed. Though govt. have taken multi steps in this regard but its not enough.

Capacity building: Training needed on evidence-based surveillance, biosafety and biosecurity and laboratory biosafety protocols, specimen collection and transport, RTPCR, case management, IPC, including on donning and doffing of PPE for relevant health and lab professionals.

Equipment and reagent: Ventilators; Pulse oxymeter with cardiac monitoring, N95 mask, Closed colored bin, PPE, Biohazard bag, Autoclave, Viral transport media with swabs, , Large medical oxygen cylinders; RNA extractor, Reagents and laboratory consumables Normative work: Develop, review and disseminate SOPs for the molecular detection of COVID-19, Printing and dissemination of guideline on case management, SOP and job aids; Printing and dissemination of triage algorithm and job aids; Printing and dissemination of triage algorithm and job aids. HR: National consultant for contact tracing, surveillance, and National consultant for monitoring quality of in vitro diagnostics and other devices. Others: Provision of ambulance service in all districts for COVID-19.

Limit human-to-human transmission including reducing secondary infections among close contacts and health care workers, Prevent transmission & amplification events, and enhance infection prevention & control in community and health care settings; Identify, isolate and care for patients early. ESDO who have direct intervention in most vulnerable 49 district have support the health sector by 800 PPE use guideline to health service providing agencies and 4046 items PPE to health service provider with the support of Start Fund/DFID and from own fund. But it’s not enough as per ESDO need assessment there need a huge number of FFE items, Oxygen cyl, Oxygen Flowmetter, Nebulizer, Thermal Gun immediately. That for need at least 90,000,000 BDT. Please raise your hand for the sake of the humanity. Please come and stand aside to ESDO. Stand aside to the humanity.

SAWRP II

ESDO is implementing South Asia WaSH Result Project-II at 18 unions of Thakurgaon Sadar Upazilla under Thakurgaon Disstrict with the financial assistance of WaterAid Bangladesh for ensuring access to safe drinking water, hygienic latrine for all and promoting a hygienic behaviour among the people. The overall goal of the project is to contribute to improved human wellbeing and dignity of disadvantaged people in Thakurgaon Sadar upazila under Thakurgaon District through WaSH access.

COVID-19 Initiative from Project

COVID-19 is an invisible and deadly contagious disease that spreads rapidly from person to person. The disease has already spread to all countries of the world and the World Health Organization has declared the disease a pandemic. With specific treatments or medicine for this disease has not yet been discovered. According to the World Health Organization, most viruses enter the body through human hands. Therefore, Frequent, thorough handwashing with soap and water is one of the best ways to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, including COVID-19. Like a cold, coronaviruses are spread through droplets from a person coughing or sneezing, and potentially via contaminated surfaces. Good hygiene is key to avoiding spreading it – and catching it. Along with other important behaviours, thoroughly washing hands often and at key moments is essential to controlling the pandemic.

In addition to this, sneezing, adhering to coughing etiquette, maintaining social distance, using masks and awareness among people can reduce the prevalence of this disease. Considering all these issues, since the identification of COVID-19 patients in Bangladesh, ESDO SAWRP-II project has been working to distribute leaflets at the community level, hang the festoons at the union level, technic of hand wash with soapy water, and install handwashing devices at the union level. Project development workers are working to raise awareness about Coronavirus among community people through home visits.

In addition to this, marking is being done through circling to maintain social distance in the places where people gather. The people of the village usually seek treatment from the community cleaning or health center. Therefore, there is a possibility of spreading COVID-19 germs in all these places. For this, the development workers of the project are carrying out disinfectant spray activities in community clinic, health centers and market areas. Also at the community level disinfectant sprays are being applied in tubewells, latrine side, mosques, temples etc. Also, the project staff is assisting the Union Parishad in distributing relief and preparing the list as an included member in the UP Disaster Management Committee.

At a glance of COVID-19 initiative from project till now

Tender Notice

Vacancy Announcement