Indonesia is one of the countries hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic, with a 9.3% death rate – the highest in Southeast Asia. In the Indonesian island of Bali, where more than three-quarters of the economy is linked to tourism, the border closure has a catastrophic effect on the populous Bali. With a dense population of 673.1 people within each kilometre, the fear of contracting COVID-19 will make the economy plummet, and many people will lose their jobs because there’s no tourism revenue. But the pandemic will impact the impoverished people most.
People are starting to lose income, healthcare workers are working 24/7 round the clock with no rest, and medical necessities are becoming challenging to find. Those who are able-bodied are converting their jobs as a means of survival; for example, butlers at luxury villas now work as motorcycle taxi drivers delivering food and essential needs. But for the other 170,000 Balinese living on less than $2 a day with no steady income, there is no simple plan B.
Food, Hygiene Supplies and Personal Protective Equipment
For lower-income families, food and hygiene products are becoming more and more expensive. With most of them working on an hourly basis, it is already very hard to get by. And, the essential resources that are required the most, such as food supplies, hygiene products and personal protective equipment, are scarce.
This scarcity doesn’t indicate that the governments or companies are not stepping up and helping healthcare professionals fighting COVID-19. It’s more, that the situation is beyond our control; it requires an even more extraordinary collective response by us as individuals to reach and to help out as a society.
Help vulnerable households in Bali by providing their basic needs with Solemen
Bali, as one of the top tourist destinations in Indonesia, is now heading towards desolation as governments close borders to international travel in several countries. Solemen, an organisation that aims to help the marginalised in Bali, has worked for years to provide the basic necessities for them. Established in October 2010, Solemen is one of Bali’s most trusted and visible charities.
Faced with a nationwide scarcity in health and food supplies, Solemen continues to help the less fortunate communities stand up against the calamity amid the strain in getting donors.
To avoid closure, the team has successfully developed hand sanitiser to maintain the hygiene of their surroundings as a primary preventive measure during the ongoing coronavirus outbreak and to continue providing food and health assistance for those in need.
In partnership with Solemen, we’re able to identify vulnerable households in Bali, most of which have disabled family members. And for the next 30 days, we invite you to sponsor its social enterprise as a way of creating sustainability for Solemen’s contribution to society. Together with Solemen, you can help to provide direct support and funding for the disadvantaged and ‘diffabled’ in Bali by clicking here to help provide them with food and health supplies.
Delivering direct help with Kopernik and protect Bali’s frontline healthcare workers
As of 6 April 2020, Indonesia has reported 2,591 COVID-19 patients and 209 deaths. These figures are increasing exponentially on a daily basis, and medical facilities in Bali and Indonesia are at full capacity.
With an increasing number of cases, healthcare facilities in Bali are facing a shortage of medical supplies such as personal protective equipment and sanitizing supplies. This puts healthcare workers at greater risks of exposure to COVID-19, exerting more pressure into facilities which are already handling a growing number of cases.
In order to minimize the chance of COVID-19 affecting the healthcare workers in Bali, Kopernik plans to distribute the following medical supplies: Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and sanitising supplies. These medical supplies will be distributed to medical facilities around Bali, including public and private hospitals as well as clinics (such as Clinic Pratama and Utama).
Photo: Kopernik team during their COVID-19 Bali Emergency Response
This is an awakening moment. These healthcare workers could be the last ones a dying person sees. Those same doctors and nurses are spending 24 hours round the clock at hospitals and public healthcare centre. Sometimes they also need to self-isolate from their families when they go home – even to the extent of getting evicted from their homes, worrying they’d spread the virus. These individuals play a part in support those professionals working hardest to keep us alive right now.
Together, we aim to protect healthcare workers in Bali who are working on the frontlines to combat COVID-19 so they can provide much-needed assistance to those affected by the virus.
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Photo: Solemen on their monthly food assistance program
And there are also families who rely on food assistance and are not able to support themselves on a daily basis because of their disadvantages, being the last ones overlooked by society, which makes it all the more shocking that events like what you’ve read are actually occurring. These people need your help.
Donate now with Solemen Bali and keep hope alive for Bali.
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We know we will all come through this challenging situation, and by giving for others, we hope we will look back on it and see that we got things right. Help families and healthcare workers in Bali by making a critical donation today.