Through the USAID – US Agency for International Development, the U.S. government is launching two new projects in Samoa to help communities prepare for and respond to COVID-19 and other disasters.
USAID awarded $1.8 million to Catholic Relief Services (CRS) to support efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the Pacific Island nations of Fiji, the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Samoa, and Tonga. Together with CRS’s local partner Caritas, USAID disseminates critical information and educational materials about the pandemic, installing handwashing stations and water tanks at strategic points on the islands, and distributing hygiene kits to help people stay healthy.
USAID is also working with CARE to provide $1.85 million to collaborate with local organizations in Samoa, Kiribati and Tuvalu to distribute hygiene supplies and raise awareness on safe hygiene practices to help people, especially at-risk communities, to protect themselves from COVID-19.
In Samoa, CARE’s local partner Nuanua O Le Alofa, a disability advocacy organization, is working to reach persons with disabilities with critical information about COVID-19 through braille and sign-language translation services, approximately 600 hygiene kits tailored to their unique needs, and 300 disability support items to enable safe hygiene practices.
Another local organization in Samoa, Women in Business Development Inc. will provide COVID-19 educational materials for homes and farms and will locally produce coconut oil soap with educational COVID-19 messages on the packages for distribution to vulnerable communities.
Through a partnership with the United Nations International Children’s Fund (UNICEF) in Samoa, USAID is also providing child protection services – including psychological support for children and parents, social services, and training in psychological first aid for community leaders – to help respond to the increased prevalence of child abuse, neglect, exploitation, and family separation as a result of the pandemic.
The grants to CRS, CARE, and UNICEF are part of the U.S. government’s total $24.2 million assistance to support efforts to prevent and respond to the spread of COVID-19 in Pacific island nations.
The COVID-19 prevention and response programs supported by USAID will provide Samoan communities with critical information and resources to help ensure they are prepared to protect themselves from the virus should it arrive in the country.
