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WFP Sri Lanka Country Brief, April 2020

Страны
Шри-Ланка
Источники
WFP
Дата публикации
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In Numbers

45 percent of women in the reproductive age group are overweight or obese

33 percent of pregnant and lactating women are anaemic

USD 0 cash-based transfers in April 2020

US$ 3.49 million – Six months net funding requirement (May 2020 – October 2020)

Operational Updates

• The first confirmed case of COVID-19 was reported on 27 January, and as of late May, had risen to over 850 confirmed cases, with nine deaths, 117 under observation, and 366 cases recovered.

• From 18 March throughout April, the Government imposed an emergency curfew in certain districts and followed it with a curfew for the entire island, with intermittent relaxations to allow people to purchase provisions. Together with the private sector and state food distribution agencies, the Government organized door deliveries of essential food items. Essential service workers were allowed to operate, after obtaining a permit, as were small holder farmers and tea and other cash crop producers. The Government initiated a number of social assistance packages for vulnerable populations.

• Schools have been closed since 12 March, affecting the provision of school meals and WFP’s planned school feeding activities.

• The parliamentary elections that were due in April, have been fixed for 20 June, however this may change further depending on the health situation.

• To plan out the economic and social recovery process, the Government established a new Presidential Task Force for Economic Revival and Poverty Eradication. This committee has replaced the former task forces which focused on the supply of essential services.

• WFP has developed an integrated approach to mitigate the socio-economic impact from COVID-19. This includes: o Immediate access to food through school meals - support an estimated 80,000 children in primary schools in Central, Uva, Northern and Eastern Provinces by providing a take-home food pack sufficient for one month; o Enhance availability and access to food through the provision of nutrition-sensitive home-gardening kits using the mechanism of the National Saubagya Home Gardening Programme; o Prepare and respond early to South-West Monsoons, including in COVID-19 high risk areas, to reduce compounding effects; o Analyse the impact of COVID-19 on food security on vulnerable populations; o Effectively coordinate the Food Security & Livelihoods, Cash, and Logistics clusters.

• WFP co-hosted the first Food Security and Livelihoods sector meeting on 7 April to enhance coordination amongst government, UN agencies and INGOs.

• In preparation for the approaching monsoon season, WFP developed a Concept of Operations (CONOPS) to complement and support the Government’s wider disaster response activities, in case of need.

• In anticipation of restarting project activities in the coming weeks as the country opens up, WFP developed risk communication posters in local languages to sensitize participants and beneficiaries of the resilience building projects on adhering to health regulations.