Over Half Million Euros to Aid Vulnerable Families in Spain and Portugal during COVID-19

CAF—development bank of Latin America—donated USD 600,000 to support vulnerable populations in Spain and Portugal affected by the health crisis and lockdown caused by COVID-19. Part of these funds were used to finance, through executing entities, aid programs for disadvantaged groups impacted by the pandemic, as well as support initiatives for the adaptation of online education and digitalization in public schools. This contribution was channeled through three renowned NGOs—Ayuda en Acción, the Spanish Red Cross and Caritas Española—in Spain, and the Portuguese Federation of Food Banks in Portugal. This selection was made based on the history, implementation capabilities and prestige of these organizations.

The funds channeled throughAyuda en Acción were allocated to the “Aquí también” program against child poverty in Spain. As part of the Cruz Roja Responde Program, CAF’s funds were used to aid 25,000 vulnerable families in the basic needs of healthcare supplies and to provide accommodation to homeless people with chronic diseases. In the case of Cáritas Española, the aid was earmarked for its “Acogida y Atención” Program

Additionally, another technical cooperation for USD 250,000 was approved to support the “Resilient Digital Schools” project implemented by Ayuda en Acción, which seeks to boost digital resilience of public schools, ensuring continuity of studies, either face-to-face, remote or in a mixed mode, using a replicable and scalable model.

On the other hand, through the Portuguese Food Bank Federation’s Food Emergency Network, a group of duly protected volunteers distributed food to low-income families, unemployed people and other financially vulnerable groups. The Food Emergency Network records people’s needs on a digital platform, which facilitated support for more than 400,000 people with food shortages.

Since COVID-19 was declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) and the Pan American Health Organization highlighted the high risk it poses to the region, CAF offered its member countries a number of tools, such as a contingent line of credit for up to USD 50 million per country for direct support to public health systems and the most critical sectors, in addition to the donation of essential supplies and aid to the healthcare sector for USD 400,000 to Argentina, Ecuador, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay.