ActionAid Palestine to Continue Improving Preventive Measures for Combating COVID-19 in the Occupied Gaza Strip
Gaza Strip-Occupied Palestinian Territory(oPt)-ActionAid Palestine (AAP) continues its emergency interventions in Gaza to respond to the needs of the marginalized women and communities to combat COVID-19.
(photo of Youth volunteers during Preparedness and Response Actions)
During May, AAP and its partners including the Palestinian Developmental Women Studies Association (PDWSA) and Al-Aqsa Sport Club identified the needs of the most vulnerable groups to counteract the impact of this virus, particularly due to the current state of complete lockdown in the besieged enclave. The hygiene and food needs of Palestinian women-headed households were decided based upon a rapid need assessment conducted along with our partners on the ground to provide services that are compatible with the nature and scale of the needs.
(photo of young women and young men during Preparedness and Response Actions)
1000 households were provided with hygiene kits to contain the spread of the virus in eight communities in the middle area of Gaza in partnership with PDWSA including(Wadi Al-Salqa-Abu Al-Ajin ,West Al Zawaida, Al Mosadar, Hijer Al-Deek,Wadi Gaza, Al-Mughraqah and Al Nuseirat).This response was funded by Disaster Preparedness and Response Fund (DPRF) managed by ActionAid International. Food parcels were distributed on 617 households in Al Nuseirat and AL Mughraqah in partnership with Al-Aqsa Sport Club through AAP’s Child Sponsorship programme which is based on human rights.
(photo of food hygiene items provides by AAP to marginalized women and families in Gaza)
This response aimed to strengthen the resilience of those households whose living conditions were increasingly deteriorated under the current state of complete lockdown due to the spread of virus especially in light of the social and economic challenges resulting from the prolonged blockade on Gaza over the 13 years.
(photo of young men during Preparedness and Response Actions)
The response was proactively designed by integrating the needs of the elderly, people with disabilities and the approach of gender lens and analysis to combat COVID-19. This integration aimed to mitigate the multifaceted effect of this crisis on them and ensure that humanitarian assistance effectively and equitably protects women, girls, men and boys and capitalizes on their respective capacities and benefits.
(photo of AAP’s staff members while are preparing hygiene kits and food parcels to be distributed to the marginalized women and families in Gaza under AAP’s emergency interventions responding to COVID-19)
As the collective lockdown affects the current social gender roles, new dynamics were reinforced including loss of livelihoods under the lack of social protection in informal sector. As such, for those (namely women and girls) that already experience strict control over their movement, access to resources and general rights. The responsibility of maintaining the cleanliness of the household is also increasing burdens and negatively affecting the psycho-social status of women and girls as primary domestic caregivers. An increase in domestic violence is also being experienced as more people are confined to their homes.
(photo of a young woman while she is volunteering Preparedness and Response actions)
AAP and its local partners and community-based centers in the targeted areas empowered youth and increased their participation in national and sub-national decision-making processes related to preventive measures for combating COVID-19. Empowering youth was achieved by engaging youth and women members of preparedness and response committees in this response. This response also highlighted the leading role the youth play in emergency, stages of decision-making process and community interventions stressing the necessity to ensure fulfilling the needs of the marginalized groups in the response taken by the local authorities. 24 youth members of those committees were trained on how to address emergency cases, safety and preventive measures and social distance to ensure their security.
(photo of youth volunteers during emergenc
AAP Country Director, Ibrahim Ibraigheth said: “this intervention is part of a series of other emergency interventions AAP is implementing in the West Bank and Gaza. We stress the necessity of lifting the blockade and recognizing the rights of the Palestinian people including freedom and independence and self-determination. International community is also demanded to exert pressure on Israel to respect the rights of the Palestinian people. Israel must be reminded of its duty as an occupying power to deploy all means to combat the spread of contagious diseases and lift the blockade.”
Background Information
ActionAid
ActionAid is a global federation working for social justice and gender equality and eradicate poverty. ActionAid works worldwide to empower people living in poverty and exclusion with focus on women’s rights .ActionAid works directly and closely with communities, civil society organizations, women movements and social groups and movements and other allies to tackle root causes of poverty and oppression. ActionAid deliver grassroots programmes to utilize efforts of global struggle movements working for a just, fair and sustainable world. Based on human rights-based approach and women rights’ principles, ActionAid seeks to fairly re-distribute powers through solidarity, empowerment, awareness campaigns and creating alternatives to ensure that everybody enjoys the right to a life of dignity, and freedom from oppression.
ActionAid in Palestine (AAP) is a part of that federation which started its work in Palestine in 2007 to strengthen the resilience of Palestinian People as ActionAid believes that they should enjoy their rights to freedom, justice and self-determination. AAP implements a number of programs through its engagement with communities and women and youth groups seeking to empower them and enhance their influential civil and political participation to understand their rights and undertake collective activism to address the protracted rights violations resulting from the prolonged occupation of Palestine. AAP works simultaneously to enhance their leadership capacity and knowledge to practice their citizenship in holding authorities and other duty bearers to account.
For more information, please contact
Riham Jafari
Coordinator of Advocacy and Communication in Gaza Strip and West Bank
Mobile:
+972 (0) 595242890
Office:
+972 (0) (2) 22 13 137
Email: