Nepal COVID-19 Update: Hundreds of New Cases Every Day

Nepal’s situation is dire to say the least. The nation is facing an impossible choice between more deaths and cases from COVID-19 if the lockdown were lifted and deaths from eventual starvation if the country remains on lockdown. The Kathmandu Post reports over 7,000 cases as of today, Wednesday, June 17. Almost 600 cases were added just today, the record daily high ever recorded.* The country is beginning to reopen as it reaches its 20th confirmed COVID-19 death, just as India is doing while the pandemic runs rampant throughout both countries. The number of cases in Nepal began increasing exponentially in May and has not shown any signs of slowing down. Even so, these numbers are likely far below the real case count as a lack of testing means limitations on Nepal’s ability to confirm COVID-19 cases.

Source: https://ourworldindata.org/covid-cases?country=~NPL

Mitrata’s Executive Director, Christine Schutz, has been in regular communication with the BSF team in Nepal. She reports:

“The situation with food and lack of income for many Nepali families is becoming desperate.  Some schools with older children are trying to do more online instruction, but many families have no access to internet or computers. There is talk of schools starting again in a couple of months but no specific plan.  Many Nepali workers out of the country are returning home to Nepal or getting stuck in refugee-type camps in foreign countries waiting for flights to Nepal. Nepal depends heavily on tourism and remittances for economic success and both are completely shutdown. Many fear an economic depression is coming soon.”

Despite the hundreds of new, confirmed cases of COVID-19 every single day, Mitrata is blessed and thankful that none of our children count among those confirmed cases. BSF staff are working tirelessly to regularly get in touch with our children and make at least 6 deliveries to each family of food and hygiene and other necessary items. This endeavour is made even more difficult by the lack of reliable transportation and country-wide lockdown.

Christine elaborates:

“Many of our families have no income at all and are getting pretty desperate. BSF staff stay in touch trying to help the parents cope with the stress of having the children at home and providing supportive telephone counseling. Younger children in the Contact Center are getting visits from teachers with some educational materials and activities to do. Only 2 BSF staff have been able to get to the BSF office once for needed items. BSF staff fear the long-term negative effects from this situation on our children's education and physical and mental health and are already making some initial plans of how to reopen and get the children back on a good track once they are able to return to school.”

If you would like to donate to help us provide needed food and items to our children and their families, please click on the link below. The Mitrata team is beyond grateful to those who have donated and to those who have reached out to express their support. Thank you for standing by us in this difficult time; we’re all in it together.

*Source: “Health Ministry confirms 20th Covid-19 related death and record 586 cases as national tally surges over 7,000” https://kathmandupost.com/health/2020/06/17/health-ministry-confirms-20th-covid-19-related-death-and-record-586-cases-as-national-tally-surges-over-7-000