RCE Srinagar Share Their COVID-19 Responses

RCE Srinagar has been putting in efforts to contain the spread of COVID-19 within their region through a number of approaches, beginning with capacity-building – attending various webinars and other events, and then adapting and translating the information gathered to their local area’s context by training RCE partners, volunteers, local NGOs, students and other stakeholders. 

As an active member of the Inter Agency Group (IAG) networks of states of Jammu & Kashmir and Uttar Pradesh (facilitated and supported by Sphere India, IAG is a confederation of humanitarian agencies who engage themselves in relief and rehabilitation post-disasters), RCE Srinagar has utilised IAG networks to train volunteers as well as motivating and guiding youth to join the volunteers required by government agencies. These volunteers provide supplies of essentials, work to implement social distancing, provide psycho-social care and support, and help the elderly and disabled citizens who require various kinds of help and support. 

The following, authored by RCE Srinagar, details the webinars its members have been attending: 

  1. International Alliance for COVID-19 Community Response (IACCR) - Dr. Abdhesh Gangwar, RCE Srinagar, is one of the Council members of this alliance. The objective of IACCR is to reduce and eliminate the harm caused by COVID-19 to human beings, coordinate and cooperate through sharing information, technology and resources to effectively respond to COVID-19, to report on the local epidemic situation and share response measures and experiences in various countries, to collect technical information and guidance on epidemic prevention and control, to provide technical guidance to conduct a community needs assessment and infection risk assessment etc.
  2. Sphere India, in collaboration with NDMA (National Disaster Management Authority), UNICEF, WHO and HCLF (HCL Foundation) have launched the COVID-19 Academy, a joint capacity-building initiative for preparing volunteers and outreach workers across India for various roles for COVID-19 preparedness and response. A series of online courses are being hosted on different orientation and technical sessions related to COVID-19. The sessions are conducted by experienced resource persons from WHO, UNICEF, Sphere India and other experts. Apart from the training courses, the academy also provides hand holding support to volunteers by establishing their district groups and connecting them with respective district administration, gram panchayat level community functionaries and supporting local level plans. 
  3. To address the needs of a record number of children and youth who are confined to their homes, UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities (GNLC) members around the world are organising webinars on UNESCO learning cities' response to COVID-19 between 24 March to 28 May 2020 available here.
  4. The Earth Journalism Network organised "Staying Safe while Reporting on COVID-19", designed to provide practical advice for how journalists, particularly in audio-visual media, can stay safe while covering the COVID-19 pandemic, tips on staying physically safe while on assignment, and mentally healthy while working remotely. 
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