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CARICOM to conduct survey on impact of COVID-19 on food security

Published:Tuesday | June 30, 2020 | 9:35 AM
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GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – The Guyana-based Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Secretariat Monday announced the launch of the second round of the Caribbean coronavirus (COVID-19) Food Security and Livelihoods Survey.

It said following the first round in April that highlighted the loss of livelihoods and impacts on food security in the initial stages of the COVID-19 response, “this round aims to capture the current status of affairs and illustrate how livelihoods, food security, and markets have shifted over the last two months.”

The Secretariat said that the survey is open to all CARICOM member states and Associate Members, as well as Aruba, Curaçao, and Sint Maarten until July 6.

The survey is being conducted by the United Nations World Food Programme on behalf of CARICOM and is made possible by the European Union Civil Protection and Humanitarian Operations and United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance.

“We encourage you to participate regardless of whether or not you have previously participated. This survey should only take a few minutes of your time to complete. Your participation will play a large part in providing an overview of the impact of COVID-19 on food security and livelihoods in your country or territory,” the Secretariat added.

Caribbean countries are now in the process of reopening their borders after they were forced to shut them as part of the efforts to curb the spread of the virus that has killed more than half a million people and infected more than 10 million others worldwide.

It was outlined that the agrifood sector is key in Latin America and the Caribbean in terms of contribution to the economy and employment generation.

Hence, the interruption of food systems normal functioning can have severe consequences on poverty levels and food security.

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