A message of hope from the Western Union Foundation

COVID-19 By Elizabeth Roscoe March 16, 2020

As I sit in my home office, I’m reflecting on the gravity of this moment in time. A moment when we all have more questions than answers. A moment when we have been called to come together and stay apart. It’s a historic moment. It’s a heavy moment. It’s perhaps the most important moment in our lifetime. Let’s not lose sight of the hope in this moment. With that in mind, I want to highlight some of the bright spots in the global fight against COVID-19. Together we can beat this, and the Western Union Foundation is committed to doing just that.

On Feb. 14, Western Union and the Western Union Foundation announced a USD $1M global matching challenge to help in the fight against COVID-19. You can donate here through April 14. Your donation will be matched, making your dollars go further in this fight. Give2Asia and the International Medical Corps are two of the organizations the Foundation is proudly funding in the global fight against COVID-19.

Give2Asia
Give2Asia is supporting frontline health workers and activities to slow the spread of the virus, including delivering public health information campaigns. They funded Chinese nonprofits during the initial outbreak and are now supporting local response efforts across the Asia-Pacific region, including India and South Korea. To date Give2Asia has delivered:

  • 400,000 masks to protect health workers and at-risk populations
  • 20,000 liters of disinfectant to hospitals
  • 50,000 meals for medical staff and patients

 

International Medical Corps
International Medical Corps supports approximately 1,000 static and mobile health facilities around the world. Among their most urgent priorities for combatting the COVID-19 outbreak are:

  • training frontline health workers
  • deploying critical personal protective equipment and medical supplies
  • providing case management support to countries in need

True to International Medical Corps’ mission, its teams are serving the most vulnerable populations in countries and regions experiencing disaster, disease, conflict, displacement or other crises. For example, in Jordan, International Medical Corps is implementing case-management protocols for potential outbreaks in a refugee camp where they provide essential health services for nearly 40,000 people. In the Philippines, it delivered a two-day training session focused on how healthcare staff can manage outbreaks of infectious diseases. In the U.S., it has deployed assets from its Emergency Health Facility to Los Angeles to provide medical assistance as patient caseloads rise in areas of high need.

 

As COVID-19 continues to spread, we encourage everyone around the world to follow the World Health Organization’s recommendations to keep themselves, their families, and their communities safe from this virus.

The Western Union Foundation and Western Union will continue to monitor the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) developments closely. Today and every day, our priority is the safety and support of our employees, customers, Agents, and the NGOs doing critically important work to help those who are being impacted around the globe.