MCC Makes Positive Impact In COVID-19 Fight

-Gives Update Despite Lack of Funding

By Reuben Sei Waylaun

The Monrovia City Corporation (MCC) in collaboration with the Liberia Crusaders for Peace (LCP) is making positive impact in the fight against the coronavirus.

Since the confirmation of the virus in the country and the subsequent announcement of State of Emergency, the MCC and LCP have been making positive impact in getting the virus out of Liberia.

To ensure it is on pace with the fight against the virus, the MCC has since started full collaboration with the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), Executive Committee On Coronavirus (ECOC), and the Liberia Crusaders for Peace (LCP) as lead on Hygiene and Sanitation in the COVID-19 response.

The MCC in partnership with LCP is fully focus on hygiene and Sanitation, social mobilization, case findings, and preparation of specimen collection sites.

Making a PowerPoint presentation at the Ministerial Complex in Congo Town Thursday May 21, 2020, the Executive Director of the Liberia Crusaders for Peace and partner to MCC, Madam Juli Endee said between March 23-May 20, 2020, field data progress report shows that a number of 397, 200 were visited and marked, 794,400 were talked to. She also disclosed that 340,014 hand washing buckets were seen in households.

She also said based on the questionnaires prepared for social distancing, they visited two health districts, the Common Wealth and Bushrod districts in Montserrado County and conducted health survey on 1000 community dwellers.

“Out of the 1000 people, 220 said it’s ok constituting 22%,” she said during a PowerPoint presentation.

Madam Endee added that on Mask wearing, out of 1000 people, 500 are adhering to the measure constituting 50% and 420 constituting 42%.

“On No Hand Shaking, out of 1000 people, 800 people said it’s good to hold hands constituting 80% and 200 people said don’t constituting 20%. On Stigma, out of 1000 people, 610 people said they are afraid to do their test because of stigma constituting 61% and 390 are not constituting 39%,” the report shows.

However, the team says the lack of funding and logistics remains major constraint facing them.

“Activities implementation is singularly being pre-financed, no logistics to empower stakeholders. We need more hand washing stations and more branding for visibility. Lack of gasoline, nose masks and raingears (boots and rain coats) for case finders and communicators, mobilizers & focal persons, shortage of forms/matrix for data collection,” the team in a presentation.

However, Madam Endee said everyone has been involved in the fight by MCC and LCP because every sector of the Liberian society is very key in eradicating the virus out of the country.

At the same time, Mayor Jefferson Tamba Koijee has confirmed that they have not received a dime and they are yet to pay data collectors and others.

Mayor Koijee said despite the lack of funding, they didn’t wait for money before protecting residents of the city.

“We will continue to protect our people and demonstrate that sense of leadership. Whatever we expected has not arrived, but they will come as expected. The media has been very supportive of our work and we say thanks to all of you,” Mayor Koijee said.