Accompanying children and families affected by Covid-19

Provincial Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs (DoLISA) has cooperated with the “Save the Children International” (SCI) in Vietnam to launch a project on "Emergency response to reduce the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in the southern provinces of Vietnam". This is one of the efforts by the “SCI” in Vietnam to support disadvantaged children and families in recovering their lives after being severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

During the 4th Covid-19 wave, many families in Binh Duong were severely affected by the pandemic in all aspects of life and income. Many children have become orphans, suffering disadvantages in life. According to statistics from provincial DoLISA, the whole province has had a total of 316 orphaned children due to Covid-19. After the province has returned to the "new normal" state, activities to ease the pain of Covid-19 have been organized by leaders, departments, sectors, mass organizations and units in the province, sharing difficulties with those affected by the pandemic.

Many support activities for those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic are quickly implemented by the province. In picture: Provincial Fatherland Front Committee cooperates with donors to offer gifts to children orphaned, due to Covid-19 in Thuan An city

Also with the aim of supporting those affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, the project on "Emergency response to reduce the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in the southern provinces of Vietnam" is the first project to be implemented in Binh Duong province. In Binh Duong, the “SCI” in Vietnam has coordinated with provincial People's Committee and relevant sectors to implement the project. It is expected that about 300 children and families in the province will directly benefit from the project.

Nguyen Tan Trieu, Deputy Head of the project’s standing board said that based on the actual situation in Binh Duong province, after receiving the project, provincial Children's Fund has allocated 300 households in North Tan Uyen district, Tan Uyen town, Phu Giao district, Thuan An city to enjoy support packages. Among them, Tan Uyen town and Thuan An city are the localities with many cases of Covid-19 infection and the remaining two localities have families affected by the impact of the pandemic. “Households with difficult circumstances, street vendors, small traders or freelancers are the targeted people hardest hit by the pandemic. During the blockade period, they have no income, due to joblessness and no social welfare services such as health insurance, social insurance and unemployment insurance, so their economic lives were severely affected,” Mr. Trieu informed.

He added that the project has been implemented from December 20, 2021 to August 31, 2022 with total cost of over VND3.2 billion. The project includes four main support interventions: Food, foodstuffs and livelihood support for children and families; support on learning facilities for children; child protection support in a state of emergency; case management program support.

The direct beneficiaries of the project are children with special circumstances and at risk of falling into special circumstances due to the direct impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, with priority given to orphan groups, due to Covid-19; children infected with Covid-19; children under isolation and blockade measures; families with children under the project's intervention and support groups. Around 300 disadvantaged children and families will receive nutrition support and welfare packages. Among them, there are 150 free-trade families will receive livelihood packages while 100 children will receive equipment and means for learning. The case management program throughout the project supports children and families promptly when facing psychological and legal difficulties and accessing social services.

As planned, on February 23, 221 households in Binh Duong will receive a welfare package. The remaining packages will be implemented in the following months until the end of the project.

Nguyen Trong Vu Binh, Southern Regional Manager of the “SCI” in Vietnam: The project on "Emergency response to reduce the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in the southern provinces of Vietnam" is one of the “SCI” in Vietnam to help disadvantaged children and families in the southern provinces recover their lives after being severely affected by the pandemic. We hope that with the support of the organization, along with the efforts of local authorities and people, disadvantaged children and families can surmount this difficult period and quickly stabilize their lives.

Reported by Anh Sang-Translated by Kim Tin