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COVID-19 is having a huge impact on our lives. But the effects will be even more detrimental for developing countries.
At ICM, we are part of the solution.
As of April 12, 2021:
Number of meals delivered
14,122,806
Number of seeds delivered
313,499,650
COVID-19 creates immediate problems
for those living in ultra-poverty.
Problem #1:
Lost income
One day in quarantine means no income, which means no food for the day. And very few have friends or family that can help.
Problem #2:
Cramped housing
This makes social distancing impossible. The virus can rapidly spread because of proximity.
Problem #3:
No medical help
Some live in such remote communities that if they contracted the virus there is no access to adequate medical help.
HOW WE ARE HELPING
We have equipped over 6,000 pastors in our Thrive Network to train members in their communities on the appropriate response according to the World Health Organization.
The Canadian Institute of Health Research has selected ICM as one of their two global partners to develop and test protocols to limit the spread of the virus in developing countries.
We have activated our Rapid Emergencies and Disaster Intervention (REDI) Network to collect up-to-date information so that we can respond to the greatest needs.
ICM has developed a phone-based call-in survey tool in local dialects that will help Filipinos determine whether they have the virus and how they should respond.
ICM's 500 staff are currently working from home and direct engagement in the communities is being kept to a minimum, with strict safety protocols applied at all times.
We have trained over 75,000 ultra-poor households on how best to prepare their families for COVID-19.
ICM has created short video lessons in local dialects to educate communities through social media on COVID-19 and ways to stop the spread.
To date, our Saving Groups have saved more than US$1 million of their own money for a rainy day. ICM is actively working with our communities to make emergency “share out” distributions from these savings groups.
We have received special permission to continue to disperse food in some areas, in particular to malnourished children in our home-based feeding program.
ICM’s staff will be available by phone to advise those with the most serious cases. They will also be checking on especially vulnerable families, reaching out to partner pastors, and praying with those that call.
HOW WE ARE HELPING
HOW YOU CAN HELP
As you are doing your part to join in the global response to COVID-19, don’t forget about the poor in the Philippines and the poor around the world.
Give to the Fund for HOPE today!
STORIES FROM THE FIELD
Food pick-up at an ICM office in General Santos, Mindanao.
A once bustling bus terminal in Dipolog City now deserted. All the bus routes have been canceled to stop the spread of the virus.
In most communities, passes are required to leave the house, and each household must designate one person to go out for food.
Red Rope, once an ICM livelihood program, is now an independent cooperative of ladies earning money for their families through sewing. When the mayor sent out a plea for seamstresses to make masks for those in need, Red Rope created 500 masks.
Most people are confined to their homes by government order. A designated person can leave the house once a day to get supplies for the family. Many towns have set up checkpoints at their borders like this in Dapitan.
In Pastor Dindo’s fishing community, the suffering is amplified by their remote location and few resources. If they don’t sell fish, they can’t buy rice or other goods.
In Tacloban, the military agreed to help us with food distribution!
A health worker spraying sanitizer in a community in Panay.
Aileen, an ICM health trainer shares, “I am most concerned for our neighbors, since they have received no other support. Seeing them struggling and hungry, I can’t help but share what little that I have. I shared the Mannapacks with them, some groceries, and rice.”
PHILIPPINES HEALTH CARE WORKERS' VIDEO TRAINING
ICM is pleased to present this five-part video training series to help equip hospitals and health care workers in the Philippines to deal with the pandemic. These guidelines were produced in partnership with University of Toronto, De La Salle University, and the University of Waterloo, Ontario.