GOAL reaches more than 10million with Covid-19 support

GOAL reaches more than 10million with Covid-19 support GOAL deputy CEO Mary Van Lieshout (far left)

Irish humanitarian aid agency, GOAL, has reached more than 10 million vulnerable people with vital Covid-19 awareness messaging and supports across its 13 countries of operation since the start of the crisis in March.

The agency said it has to date reached more than 9.5 million people with coronavirus media messaging in eight of its countries, while more than 723,000 people have benefitted from direct contact in ten of its counties.

GOAL deputy CEO Mary Van Lieshout said the agency, with a staff of 2,500, is in phase one of its global response plan roll-out in Africa, the Middle East and Latin America.

She said: “We know the scale and speed of Covid-19 can be devastating, as is its capacity to take lives, destroy economies, and put an enormous strain on resources in even the most capable healthcare systems in the world. Whatever chance countries like Ireland have to cope with Covid-19, it has the potential to have a catastrophic impact on millions of vulnerable people living in the developing countries in which GOAL serves.”