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| Press release

COVID-19: IFRC calls for urgent action to tackle vaccine hesitancy in Europe amid increase in violent incidents

Budapest/Geneva, 30 September 2021 – The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is calling for urgent action to tackle vaccine hesitancy in Europe, where there has been a worrying increase in violent incidents against COVID-19 related health infrastructure and personnel. The pandemic is far from over in Europe, where an average of 2,000 people die of COVID-19 every day. More than one million people get infected every week, and hospitalisations are going up in half of the EU/EEA countries, including among young people and children, but particularly among unvaccinated adults. Intensive Care Units are getting dangerously filled up in Bulgaria and Romania, for example, which have low immunisation rates. The World Health Organization (WHO) recently projected 236,000 additional deaths linked to COVID-19 by 1 December across Europe,[i] and there are growing concerns about soaring infections and deaths in some parts of Eastern Europe, South Caucasus and Central Asia. In addition, disinformation about vaccines’ side effects and potential risks, coupled with the introduction of ‘vaccine passes’, is sparking anger and violence, which have led to concerning incidents against medical services, media and the general public in countries including Italy, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Poland, Slovenia and France. Vaccination saves lives, but there is still a deadly gap in the distribution and uptake of vaccines in the region: almost 70 per cent of people in high-income countries have received at least one dose, whereas in the poorest ones barely 20 per cent have been partially vaccinated. Birgitte Bischoff Ebbesen, IFRC’s Regional Director for Europe, said: “We are facing a critical moment in the fight against COVID-19 in Europe. “Access to COVID-19 vaccination remains a challenge due to the shortage of supply in some countries. In addition, low acceptance and barriers for particularly vulnerable individuals are critical elements as well. “Increased community engagement is needed to tackle vaccine hesitancy, myths and disinformation. Without addressing people’s concerns and fears, vaccines may not find their way into the arms of those most at risk, even where doses are available,” Ebbesen warned. With support from the IFRC, National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies across Europe are working to build trust. Local teams have reached out to more than 300,000 people on the importance of getting vaccinated and have helped immunise 31 million people, actively engaging communities to ensure they have accurate information and can protect themselves. According to a survey conducted by the Collective Service for Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE), of which the IFRC is a part, at least three quarters of people in most countries worldwide would agree to be vaccinated, if it was available and recommended.[ii] The data also suggests that in areas where there were high levels of hesitancy initially, increases in vaccinations overall may have impacted acceptance. More support is needed to address vaccine hesitancy and speed up immunization campaigns across the region, though. “If we don’t step up collective efforts to strengthen community trust and make vaccines widely available, it will be too late,” stressed Ebbesen. At the moment, IFRC’s COVID-19 Emergency Appeal[iii] is only 60 per cent funded. For more information, please contact: In Budapest: Ainhoa Larrea, +36 705 070 131, [email protected] In Geneva: Teresa Goncalves, +44 7891 857 056, [email protected] About IFRC IFRC is the world’s largest humanitarian network, comprising 192 National Red Cross and Red Crescent societies working to save lives and promote dignity around the world. www.ifrc.org - Facebook - Twitter - YouTube [i] https://www.euro.who.int/en/about-us/regional-director/statements-and-speeches/2021/statement-whoeurope-stagnating-covid-19-vaccination-uptake-requires-urgent-action [ii] https://www.rcce-collective.net/resource/data-synthesis-public-perceptions-of-the-covid-19-vaccinations-june-2021/ [iii] https://www.ifrc.org/emergency/covid-19-outbreak

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12 months of coronavirus in Europe

The moment the first coronavirus case was reported in Europe – on 24 January 2020, in Bordeaux, France– no one could have possibly imagined the monumental scale of the year of loss and struggle ahead. Nor could they have foreseen how Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies stepped up their activities across Europe and Central Asia, enabling them to be at the heart of the response. Staff and volunteers from the movement have been running first aid tents, delivering critical supplies to the elderly, caring for the sick and dying, at the end of the phone for people unable to leave home. They’ve provided food, shelter, a kind word and a friendly face, supported those who fall through the cracks – the migrants, people on the move, people who are homeless. They’ve provided trusted information. The numbers are staggering. More than 12.5 million people across the region have received food and other material aid from Red Cross Red Crescent[1]. More than 2.8 million people have received direct cash or voucher assistance and 1.3 million more received psychosocial support to help them through the tough times. Red Cross Red Crescent ambulances carried more than 325,000 COVID-19 patients to hospitals. Accurate information was shared to help inform people about the virus and how to stay safe, and an estimated 60 million people in the region have been reached with this messaging. The breathtaking spread of the virus With Italy the centre of the first wave, and the first country to go into lockdown, it remained the hardest hit country in Europe for months. Italian Red Cross was the first National Society in Europe to deliver food and medicine to people in quarantine, and ramped up their ambulance service to cope with the escalating number of people infected. By March Europe was the epicentre of the COVID-19 pandemic, so much so that on 18 March more than 250 million people were in lockdown in Europe. And now, nearly 12 months after the first case, sadly by 19 January 2021, 30.8 million cases were confirmed and 674,00 people in the region had died. [2] The Red Cross Red Crescent response needed to be swift. On 30 January the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak a public health emergency of international concern and the following day the International Federation of Red Cross Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) allocated funds for a Disaster Relief Emergency Fund (DREF) and a preliminary Emergency Appeal. With its long experience in health emergencies it anticipated COVID-19 could develop into a pandemic with a devastating humanitarian impact and sadly it has shaped up to be one of the world’s most challenging crises, affecting every corner of the region with everyone vulnerable to contracting this virus. In line with Red Cross Red Crescent’s unique role as auxiliary to government, and as a community-based and widely-trusted organization, in Europe region the Red Cross movement came up with innovative responses. The Austrian Red Cross developed a contact tracing app. British Red Cross surveyed people on their loneliness and pivoted to provide extra support for those newly alone. The Czech Red Cross trained volunteers to work in hospitals that had become overwhelmed. The Turkish Red Crescent researched people’s knowledge and attitudes towards the virus and pivoted to fill the gaps they discovered. Swedish volunteers helped children with their homework. The Red Crosses of the countries of Italy, Slovenia and Croatia worked together to get supplies across their borders to people in an isolated part of Croatia. Extra support was given to people with HIV in Eastern Europe and Central Asia whose treatment was disrupted by the pandemic. With the rapid surge in prevention activity, while case numbers grew at an alarming rate, by the end of Spring the situation had improved somewhat. By summer as numbers plateaued government restrictions relaxed. The movement urged people to stay the course and maintain prevention measures in the face of pandemic fatigue and a sense the worst was behind us. Second wave Sadly conditions deteriorated, leading to a second wave. From late July case and death numbers steadily worsened again. By October, the Europe region accounted for the greatest proportion of reported new cases globally, with over 1.3 million new cases in the last week of October, a 33% leap in cases in a week. The national societies doubled down. Many had by now switched to remote and on-line support, however 23 National Societies continued to deliver COVID-safe clinical and paramedical services, including those in Germany, Italy, Israel, Spain and the UK. As well they ran quarantine and testing stations, triage facilities and outpatient fever clinics to support the public emergency medical service, and provided mobile care services. Some National Societies also supported experimental treatments by collecting plasma from patients who recovered from COVID-19 and had antibodies, and in turn provided this plasma to hospitals to treat very sick patients. Countless training and guidance sessions for staff and volunteers on COVID-19 were helped across the region, on the proper use of personal protective equipment and ambulances cleaning and disinfection. Vaccines – a potential game changer By the start of December, the future started to look brighter. Countries started to plan for the possible arrival of vaccines, but this was taking place against a background of a relentless resurgence in the number of people infected with COVID-19. In the WHO Europe region, there had been more than 4 million new cases in November alone, with the region accounting for 40 % of new global cases and 50% of new global deaths. [3] The vaccine results have come to be seen a large part of the solutions to containing the virus, but it has brought with it the challenge of countering misinformation and building trust in vaccines, as well as managing expectations that they will bring about a quick end to the pandemic. IFRC has supported local efforts to educate communities about their safety and efficacy. Those hardest hit In January more evidence came to light of the disproportionate impact the coronavirus was having on older people when the IFRC’s Europe office published the results of a survey[4] which found older people had become sicker, poorer and more alone as a result of the pandemic. It added to a growing body of evidence that coronavirus had harmed the poor and most vulnerable the most, pushing millions more into poverty. [5] Sadly, migrants were also identified in new IFRC research as those least protected and most affected by the pandemic. [6] And now, as we enter the start of the second year of the pandemic under ongoing harsh lockdowns, many countries are starting to see cases stabilise and even reduce. This emergency has had significant challenges, including global flows of misinformation and disinformation, response fatigue and system-wide impacts of multiple waves of cases. The Red Cross Red Crescent movement is well-placed to do its part in the regional response given its extensive history with disease outbreak. And planners in the movement acknowledge that vaccines will not be the silver bullet to end this pandemic alone. Red Cross will continue to work with communities to ensure they are informed about the virus, how it spreads and what to do to keep safe. It’s continuing to advocate for tracing and isolation of people who are ill as a central part of the response. To keep in the fight against COVID-19, the entire population must stick to the preventative measures which have been proven to help stop the spread of the virus – even as a vaccine becomes more widely available. [1] https://go.ifrc.org/emergencies/3972#actions [2] https://covid19.who.int/ [3] https://www.euro.who.int/en/about-us/regional-director/news/news/2020/12/whoeuropes-year-in-review-2020 [4] https://www.ifrc.org/press-release/new-study-finds-coronavirus-has-left-older-people-poorer-sicker-and-more-alone [5] https://blogs.worldbank.org/voices/2020-year-review-impact-covid-19-12-charts [6] https://www.ifrc.org/press-release/migrants-and-refugees-least-protected-most-affected-covid-crisis-warns-ifrc-president

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| Press release

Red Cross raises the alarm across Europe: “Your best defence against this virus is you”

Budapest/Geneva, 14 October 2020 – The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) is urging European governments and its citizens to simultaneously exercise leadership and remain vigilant as COVID-19 ravages the region. More than seven million people have tested positive for COVID-19 across Europe, and 41 of 54 European countries have recorded a more than 10 per cent increase in positive cases compared to two weeks ago. In 23 of those countries, the increase in cases reached more than 50 per cent.[1] “Almost 250,000 people in Europe have lost their lives due to COVID-19. Every death is a tragedy, and we must all work together to try and stop further deaths. We need to take collective action and make the right choices now. Keep physical distance, avoid crowds and parties, wear a mask, wash your hands, and isolate yourself if ill. Hard choices now will pay off in the coming weeks. Protect yourself to protect others. Until this storm passes – and it will – your best defence against this virus is you,” said Birgitte Bischoff Ebbesen, Head of the IFRC for Europe. Dr Emanuele Capobianco, Head of Health and Care of IFRC, said: “We would not be fulfilling our humanitarian obligation if we did not sound the alarm in this dire moment of the pandemic’s trajectory. We ask governments to act with speed, courage and inclusiveness: to step up protective measures without delay, follow scientific evidence and recommendations and support the most vulnerable who are being affected by both the virus and its heavy socio-economic impact. We know it is a very difficult moment which requires difficult decisions: solving the health crisis will help solve the economic and social one. “We owe it to the hundreds of thousands of front-line workers and citizens who are confronting this pandemic with great commitment and spirit of sacrifice. We can still turn this tide if we act courageously in this moment,” continued Dr Capobianco. Across the continent, Red Cross and Red Crescent teams continue to play their part in curbing the spread of COVID-19 and meeting the evolving needs of vulnerable communities: In the UK, British Red Cross volunteers are responding to a shift in the type of calls to their free COVID-19 support line – with the public increasingly seeking emotional support and help with complex needs. The situation is similar for the Italian Red Cross, where psychologists taking calls from the public via their toll-free number say common themes are loneliness, fear and shame of asking for help. Youth volunteers with the Italian Red Cross are also reaching out to young people in the country to explain the importance of personal protective measures and offering peer support. The Netherlands Red Cross is supporting thousands of people who no longer have enough money to buy groceries through the provision of food vouchers, which will cover one meal per day over the coming months. In Spain there’s been a huge response from young Red Cross volunteers, where more than 21,000 young people are helping the most vulnerable populations affected by COVID-19 by distributing food to people at home, accompanying the elderly, transferring patients and supporting families with educational help and resources for children And in south-east France, which has been hit by recent severe flooding, in a partnership between the city of Arras and the Red Cross of Pas-de-Calais rescuers have taken to the streets of the city centre to remind people of the importance of COVID-19 safety measures. French Red Cross first aid workers have also been in primary and nursery schools talking to children about the importance of COVID-19 protections. “Months into this pandemic, we know communities across Europe are craving a return to normality. But the figures confirm we are not out of the woods yet, and as we head towards winter it is more important than ever that we remain socially close while staying physically distant,” Ms Ebbesen ended. [1] Source: World Health Organization

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British Red Cross encourages language learning with refugee teachers

By Mark Richard South, IFRC Getting people talking, that’s the aim of a new partnership which has seen the British Red Cross team-up with a refugee-led language learning start-up. As part of the AVAIL project, the British Red Cross is working together with Chatterboxto connect language learners with teachers coming from refugee backgrounds. Through the Chatterbox platform, language learners can pick from more than ten languages – including Arabic, Persian, French, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese - to learn and practice online with trained native speakers. “Too often the skills of people who are refugees go unrecognised and unused when they arrive in a safe country,” explained Fiona Harvey from the British Red Cross. “Working with Chatterbox we are recognising people’s skills, helping show that the talents refugees arrive with are an opportunity we can all benefit from, and also strengthening connections between refugees and people in their new communities.” As well as tapping into existing skills and providing a flexible option for employment – often a challenge for refugees arriving in the UK – Chatterbox also provides an opportunity for refugees and language learners to interact and know more about each other, and each other’s cultures, in a natural environment. The project is also helping key workers – such as police officers and health workers - to learn languages commonly spoken by refugees. Supporting the development of these language skills not only benefits the learners in their day jobs, but also makes services more accessible to refugees more widely, and enhances the value of refugee languages in the workplace - further contributing to overall integration and understanding. “Getting people communicating, understanding and empathising with each other is a key part of integration,” added Harvey. “Whether it’s online or in person, simply chatting together really can make a world of difference.”

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Refugees support new arrivals with British Red Cross Life Skills course

By Nora Peter, IFRC For people who are seeking asylum in the UK, Life Skills courses are designed and delivered by peer educators who have themselves experienced the asylum process, as well as the ups-and-downs of adjusting to life in a new country. “I’m happy to assist the newcomers because I didn’t get that kind of support when I arrived. When I came, there was no one to help me,” says Maria, a peer educator living in Cardiff. So far Maria and the team of eight peer educators have delivered the course four times, helping welcome 58 asylum seekers to Newport and supporting them to adjust to their new lives. As well as going in-depth into the asylum process, sessions also cover practical topics like healthcare and wellbeing, education, volunteering, state law and local orientation. English language classes are also available. The courses provide a safe environment for asylum seekers to ask questions, engage in group discussions and collect important information and listen to migration and asylum experts. “When planning the sessions, the Peer Educators ask each other: what information do you wish you had known when you first moved to the UK? After that, we do online research on the topic, and engage with subject matter experts such as police officers and nurses,” explains Fiona Harvey, Project Manager at the British Red Cross, “and check information with local service providers to make sure it’s accurate. The group then meet again to come up with themes and activities to embed the learning.” And this approach of drawing on advice from the real experts – people who have experienced the realities of being a refugee in the UK at first hand – seems to be paying off. “We have had positive feedback both from peer educators and from participants,” Fiona adds. Rose, a peer educator from Cardiff, understands only too well the importance of the role she and her colleagues have to play. “People leaving their home countries to come to the UK know that their lives are going to change forever,” she says. “They need us to encourage them, to give them hope and guidance, so that they can find their peace of mind and start following the processes.” The Life Skills courses are supported through the AVAIL (Amplifying the Voices of Asylum seekers and refugees for Integration and Life skills) project, part of a broader initiative involving Red Cross societies in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Italy and Latvia, funded by the European Union.

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“We share our platform so people can speak for themselves and be heard” – British Red Cross amplifies refugee voices

By Mark Richard South, IFRC Stepping aside and letting others lead might sound a surprising move for a National Society seeking to increase its influence on issues affecting refugees but sharing power and enabling participation is key to a groundbreaking new approach from the British Red Cross. The VOICES Network, supported by the British Red Cross, is a nationwide association of people with refugee backgrounds providing a platform on which to share the challenges they face and raise those issues to decision-makers. “There are many people out there who don’t know how to channel their grievances when they think that there should be a change in asylum policy. I am trained to know how and where to meet people who can make this change happen,” explains Godwin, a refugee from Nigeria and a member of the VOICES Network. For VOICES Ambassadors like Godwin, sharing their experiences with the public has the potential to change minds, engaging with the media can help shape public opinion, and advocating with policymakers can secure changes to government policy. And by coordinating and focusing on a few select priority areas - the right to work, access to education, effective asylum process, detention, housing and family reunion – the ambassadors increase their chance of having an impact. The Voices Network also plays a crucial role for the British Red Cross when it devises programmes to support refugees and asylum seekers in the UK, with the insights and experiences of Network members proving an invaluable resource to draw from. “Policies and services are too often designed and implemented without consulting the people they are supposed to help. Solutions designed to enhance integration rarely recognise or build on the diverse skills, experiences and qualifications refugees already have,” says Fiona Harvey, Project Manager at the British Red Cross. “The VOICES Ambassadors have been, and are, on the receiving end of asylum policy – you couldn’t find better qualified experts on the asylum process. Sometimes even the smallest change to legislation or its implementation can have a huge impact on people’s lives, and that is why recognizing the value of people’s lived experience is so important,” she adds. As part of its supporting role, the British Red Cross has been providing training for VOICES Ambassadors – covering how to engage with media on various levels, and how to plan and deliver advocacy - and is finding that the training is having knock-on effects in other aspects of participants’ lives. Anna, a refugee living in Glasgow has found taking part in the VOICES Network key to overcoming her shyness. “I have gained so much from the VOICES Network. Before I was so shy and today, I can stand in front of any audience and tell them about the issues that we face,” she says. Zain from Leicester found the Network a great place to connect with people who have had similar experiences. “Being involved in the VOICES Network has made me feel that I am not alone, that there are others who are in the same situation as me. This a great platform for marginalised groups such as migrants like me to have a voice as it empowers us to break through the obstacles and barriers we face,” he says. The VOICES Network is also supported through the AVAIL (Amplifying the Voices of Asylum seekers and refugees for Integration and Life skills) project and is part of a broader initiative involving Red Cross societies in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Italy and Latvia, funded by the European Union. For more information, visit:https://thevoicesnetwork.home.blog/

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British Red Cross supports young refugees to integrate through theatre

By Gurvinder Singh & Debbie Busler While performers recite famous lines from William Shakespeare on the Globe theatre’s main stage, a few yards away is a room where Abye and other young migrants and refugees from Africa, the Middle East and Asia are gathered. They alternate between periods of intense focus creating puppets to tell stories and bursts of laughter as they practice freezing into various dramatic poses. Partnering with the Compass Collective and the Globe Theatre in London, the British Red Cross facilitates a drama group for young refugees and asylum seekers. Abye and his friends at the group have developed a production that they performed at the Globe Theatre for the public during Refugee Week. Tickets for the show were sold out. Abye and his friends arrived in London alone as children without their parents or families. They joined the British Red Cross to integrate into the local community and benefited from its protection services. “My friends and I come from Eritrea. There are so many problems and not much future for us there, so I left. It took me nearly two years to reach the UK and I traveled alone through many countries. I spent months in Libya waiting to cross the sea. It was very hard times and we were detained and treated badly until we could pay to move on,” Abye explains. Through the project, the British Red Cross and its partners are supporting young migrants and refugees to find their voices, express themselves, and share their experiences with the public. Its benefits are summed up by Irfan from Iraq. He shares, “I joined this group because my friends told me about it. I am learning a lot. It has made me happy to meet these other guys and to do this together.” Learn more about this project: https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/whats-on/voices-in-the-dark-2019/

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