How BRAC International scaled up response to COVID-19

Through in-depth, on-the-ground assessments, we have seen the devastating physical and economic impact on the already overburdened and underserved communities where we work, particularly women and children.

To immediately respond to COVID-19, BRAC International (BI) developed a four-pronged strategic framework to guide the response efforts. This included ensuring safety and security for all staff, conducting widespread awareness-raising campaigns, partnering with governments, community leaders, and local and international NGOs to coordinate our response, and gradually moving into widespread economic and social recovery efforts.

The four-pronged strategy is being used as a guideline to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak and its negative impact on the lives and livelihoods of BI’s programme participants, in collaboration with other stakeholders in each country. As of 8 July, the BRAC International country teams have reached more than 44.7 million people by conducting awareness-raising interventions and infection prevention and control mechanisms, distributed over 1.3 million communication materials, given over 300,000 soap and infection control materials, provided healthcare support to 538 people and arranged food and income support to over 312 families.

In addition, BI supported governments in Afghanistan, Uganda, Liberia, and Sierra Leone with a range of interventions ranging from stepping up through strengthening health service systems, managing health facilities and programmes on behalf of provincial governments to the provisioning of handwashing materials, COVID-19 related communication materials and coordination support of national programmes.

In most countries, BRAC country offices became integral parts of national coordination committees led by the respective host governments. In a number of countries, like Liberia, Afghanistan, and Sierra Leone, our teams also engaged in NGO coalitions to respond to the epidemic. In a couple of cases, country teams even took up leadership roles in specific partnership projects of those coalitions. The health and safety of the BRAC family, including members of the communities we work with, remains a primary concern to all of us and we will do all we can to support them as this situation unfolds.

Some of BRAC International’s key response activities during COVID-19: 

• Raising public awareness on personal hygiene, handwashing techniques, coughing etiquette, and protocols of social distancing through community engagement initiatives and social media platforms.
• Creating country-specific communication materials translated in local languages.
• Installing hand washing stations at all our offices, ensuring the availability of soap and alcohol-based hand sanitizers.
• Restricting our routine operations and focusing on alternative ways of programming including training our frontline workers to actively take part in raising awareness at the community level on protective measures and hygiene practices.
• Distributing PPE in the community for prevention and protection.
• Disbursing food and income supplements
• Strengthening health systems and case management support
• Providing psychosocial support

Additionally, our research teams have conducted three monthly food and income security assessment surveys to track how the lives and livelihoods of our programme participants have been affected by the economic downturn.

We are continuously collecting data from the ground to understand the lived realities of those we support. We are collecting case stories and conducting rapid research to share through our weekly situation reports to inform our network of partners and stakeholders. We are taking special care to ensure that our activities follow the tenets of gender equality and diversity. We are paying special attention to children and women, while recognising the diverse needs of people with disabilities.

We are rapidly adapting to the unprecedented nature of this crisis, turning to innovation and technology and linking it to our community presence. We are committed to working with affected communities to rebuild and emerge stronger than before.

Musharrat Bidita is a deputy manager at Communications, BRAC International.