Families have been forced to feed their children sugar and water – Ali

Save the Children Fiji CEO, Shairana Ali says some families they work with have been forced to feed their children sugar and water because they have run out of everything else.

She says the entire tourism industry was wiped out in 2020 by COVID and the second wave has hit Fiji just as families were starting to pick up the pieces.

She says the second wave of the coronavirus has devastated lives and livelihoods across Fiji forcing many families to rely on cash support and food relief packages.

Ali says many families employed in non-essential services have run out of savings as lockdowns have impacted their ability to work.

She says many families are now turning to organisations like Save the Children to meet their basic needs.

The CEO says cash assistance is the best form of support in a crisis as it empowers families to make decisions that best suit their circumstances.

She says although over 40 percent of Fijians have now received their first dose of the vaccine, the country’s long-term prospects are jeopardised by a sluggish vaccine rollout in the region and an onslaught of misinformation and conspiracy theories which are fueling vaccine hesitancy.

She says they have partnered with government and other NGOs to combat misinformation in the region but the battle is far from won.

Ali says they are working closely with local NGOs like the Fiji Council of Social Services to develop assessment criteria that targets vulnerable groups such as the elderly, women, children and people living with a disability.

Save the Children Fiji has responded to more than 1000 requests for food support since the second wave began on the 19th of April this year and is also providing short term cash assistance to families impacted by the crisis.

Earlier this year they launched one of the largest cash assistance programs ever rolled out by an NGO in Fiji known as the digital cash assistance program which supports families who have been unable to work due to the impacts of COVID whereby the first payments have so far reached over 14,000 families.