The Covid-19 Action Fund for Africa (CAF-Africa) has donated Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) to health ministries in Uganda, and Malawi for each nation’s cadre of community health workers (CHWs). CAF-Africa is an action-oriented collaborative of over 30 organizations dedicated to protecting CHWs in Africa’s COVID-19 response.
CAF-Africa donated over 6 million of PPE to Uganda. The shipment contained 6,5 million masks, and 55,752 face shields–PPE required to safeguard health workers providing services at the last-mile.
Malawi received 2 million PPE from CAF-Africa. The shipment contained 1,968,000 million masks; and 39,466 face shields.
According to the World Health Organization, there has been a 203 percent increase in Covid-19 infections amongst health care workers in Africa caused by a lack of PPE. Community health workers provide essential health services such as integrated community case management as well as COVID-19 specific activities. Without adequate PPE, they can neither fight COVID nor ensure communities have access to routine healthcare services.
Since the COVID-19 outbreak began, global demand for PPE has grown by a factor of 100, and prices are up to 20 times higher. While a worldwide shortage of PPE affects all health workers, the brunt has fallen on low- and middle-income countries and community health workers in particular.
The PPE donations already made by CAF-Africa will protect 200,000 CHWs safeguarding community health services during the pandemic.
Including East Africa, CAF-Africa has donated PPE to various countries in West, Central, and South Africa. The COVID-19 Action Fund for Africa’s goal is to raise $100 million to supply PPE to CHWs in over 20 African countries for approximately one year.