EU, Rotary Club help Deaf Association, Society for the Blind fight COVID-19

As Guyana continues to battle against its newest enemy, COVID-19, European Union (EU) Ambassador to Guyana Fernando Ponz-Cantó, in collaboration with the Rotary Club of Demerara made a donation of computers, smartphones, tablets and, sanitation and food hampers to the Deaf Association of Guyana and the Guyana Society for the Blind.

The donated pieces of electronic equipment were part of the reserve library of electronics of the recent EU Electoral Observation Mission (EU EOM) to Guyana for March 2, 2020. The EU delegation said that it expects that the devices will significantly aid the beneficiaries in their communication needs and contribute to the existing educational programmes they each conduct, especially during this period where movement and regular daily activities are restricted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The hampers were put together from donations and by the Rotarians.

In handing over the devices to the two organisations, Ambassador Ponz-Cantó remarked that vulnerable persons are those most at risk, not only from the disease but also from its side impacts including additional isolation.
“The EU makes a point of helping first those most in need. We are very happy to deliver all these materials…and we hope the computers and mobile telephones will make a difference in the daily lives of the final beneficiaries, alleviating their isolation and helping them to overcome this difficult period. More broadly, the EU is refocusing large amounts to help Guyana and other partners to fight COVID-19, and we have also just announced a regional EUR 9M package against the pandemic. We are together in this and together we will get out,” Ponz-Cantó said.
The Ambassador underscored that the equipment will enable the Deaf Association of Guyana to continue its efforts towards improving the formal education offered to deaf students and to ensure access to information and in other aspects of private and social life.
“The Guyana Society for the Blind will be able to further its CXC educational programmes, JAWS text-to-speech software which is open to everyone from ages 6-65, and the Be My Eyes App which is a built-in accessibility feature which assists with getting help for day to day tasks,” he further stated.
President Hansraj Singh of the Rotary Club of Demerara added “This unprecedented pandemic in Guyana requires coordinated efforts from us all, whether it be helping vulnerable groups or encouraging others to observe recommended measures. We thank the EU for partnering with us and encourage others to continue to consider their fellow man as we continue to demonstrate service above self”.
On Wednesday High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice President of the European Commission, Osep Borrell Fontelles announced that the bloc of nations would be reformulating its bilateral programmes in Guyana to take into account the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) reality.
He noted that in Guyana, specifically, the EU delegation is reformulating important parts of its sizeable cooperation programmes towards fighting COVID and its long-term impacts and also undertaking immediate concrete action.
The EU has so far made one billion euros available to Latin America and the Caribbean as part of the global response in support of the efforts of partner countries to tackle COVID-19.
Also, in the Caribbean, the EU has been supporting the Caribbean Public Health Agency (CARPHA) with nine million euros, and specifically, in Jamaica, the EU has financed 29 ventilators for intensive care units.
Guyana and Suriname are set to benefit from the CARPHA and PAHO interventions.