Field Update: Valerie Browning in Afar May 2020
Hear directly from Valerie Browning as she and project partners Afar Pastoralist Development Association (APDA) face malnutrition, disease, locusts and COVID-19 in Afar.
Tune in to Sharon Elliott, CEO Ethiopiaid Australia and Valerie Browning, Co-Founder & Project Manager of APDA as they discuss the effects of coronavirus in Ethiopia's north-east Afar and how APDA are responding to the virus.
Note on spitting and its link to the spread of disease
Spitting is a common social practice in Africa. Spitting out pieces of toothpick used after meals and spitting out chewing tobacco are commonplace. In addition, during the fasting period of Ramadan, many will spit out excess saliva believing they are breaking their fast if they don’t. However, as many infectious diseases are spread via bodily fluids, this practice plays a large and dangerous part in community-transmitted disease.
Interested in reading the BBC article on coronavirus and famine?
Coronavirus: World risks 'biblical' famines due to pandemic
21 April 2020
The world is at risk of widespread famines "of biblical proportions" caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the UN has warned.
A report estimates that the number suffering from hunger could go from 135 million to more than 250 million.
Those most at risk are in 10 countries affected by conflict, economic crisis and climate change, the WFP says. The fourth annual Global Report on Food Crises highlights Yemen, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Afghanistan, Venezuela, Ethiopia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, Nigeria and Haiti.
