COVID 19 – AMADE acts in favor of children on the African continent

AMADE (Association Mondiale des Amis de l’Enfance), along with the Red Cross of Monaco, react to the fast spread of the Coronavirus epidemic and to the health crisis expected on the African continent.

On a continent where healthcare systems are already fragile, life support services are almost non-existent and quarantine measures will be extremely difficult to enforce within a population living essentially in the informal sector, we must act now. As Dr Denis MUKWEGE, Nobel Prize winner and partner of AMADE, highlighted in his call to the international community, everything must be done to prevent the virus from spreading, as quickly as possible.

Although children are not yet direct victims of COVID-19, they are its main carriers within their communities and are directly impacted by schools closing. As of April 7, 2020, most African countries decided to close their schools, leaving 120 million children out of primary and secondary education in Western and Central Africa.

AMADE is now mobilized, along with its partners on the field, to respond to this unprecedented emergency since World War II. The resources will be leveraged in priority to:

Prevent the epidemy from spreading through a digital campaign reminding the protective measures to adopt;
Ensure the continuity of education through the production and dissemination of digital educational content for Western African pupils;

Quickly provide health workers working in partner hospitals with safety gear and life support systems.

 

In the Principality of Monaco, the Social Fund created by AMADE in the Princess Grace Hospital Complex (CHPG), indended to help children from low income families access healthcare and to prevent vulnerability, will be activated if needed.