Fighting against an invisible enemy in Mozambique
WFP frontline worker Hitesh Kanakrai on fighting the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic in Mozambique with innovation
“We are more afraid with COVID-19 than we were with cyclones and floods, but we find courage because people need our assistance,” says Hitesh Kanakrai, who has worked on the front lines with the World Food Programme (WFP) in Mozambique for 23 years.
“However careful we are, and however many health measures we follow, we cannot see the virus; while the cyclones, the rain and the floods are more tangible,” he says.
From crossing the Zambezi River many times in dangerous small boats to escaping from wild elephants when crossing a natural reserve or working in the aftermath of a cyclone, Hitesh’s work tales sound like an adventure book.
However, today it is the invisible threat of coronavirus that is keeping him up at night. Knowing people depend on food assistance in the province of Tete, central Mozambique, Hitesh is determined to overcome all obstacles so that WFP’s life-saving assistance can continue to reach them.
“Not everything can be done by phone or online,” says Hitesh.“When we are in the field, we have to meet people and talk to them directly.”
To ensure the safety of his team, Hitesh is in constant communication with them. “We need colleagues in different locations to inform us about suspicious cases, to investigate them and to reduce our movement when possible,” he explains. “But, at the same time, we need to be close to people; so we need search for alternative ways to assist them.”
Since social contact must be limited to prevent the spread of coronavirus, cash-based assistance is preferable to in-kind food distributions, where crowds tend to gather.
Hitesh played a key role in establishing WFP’s cash-based solutions in Mozambique, starting with a pilot project in Tete province in 2018, for which he mobilized communities and advocated with the Government to ensure the buy-in from all partners. Now his experience will be invaluable as cash transfers will be applied as part of WFP’s COVID-19 response activities in Mozambique, in close coordination with the Government and other UN partners, including UNICEF and ILO.
“Cash-based transfers provide an innovative solution to maintain food assistance in times of social distancing,” Hitesh says, explaining that, instead of receiving a pre-established food basket every month, people receive an equivalent in mobile cash with which they can buy food and other essential items, such as soap bars and cleaning products.
Hitesh also works to inspire his team to continuously develop and implement innovative solutions to maintain food assistance for the most vulnerable.
As classes were suspended in Mozambique in April and students missed out on the daily hot meals that helped them complement their nutritional needs, Hitesh led efforts to start distributing take-home rations in his province. Children’s parents were able to go to the schools and collect a take-home dry food basket to complement their family food intake. This is especially important at a time when families’income generation activities are being affected by COVID-related movement restrictions.
Hitesh worked hard to sensitize the school communities, beneficiaries and the local government and partners in order to guarantee the agreement and collaboration of all parts. “We have to engage the communities and the Government at each step of the way,” he says.
COVID-19 is adding an extra layer of complexity to existing challenges, including those linked to the effects of climate. “We are having more cyclic droughts and severe rains; communities need to be more resilient, reduce environment degradation and apply new methods to prepare for the next crisis,” Hitesh reflects.
“I need to be ready and motivate the team so they feel that our work is making a difference in people’s lives,” he says. “I have to take them to the field to look into the eyes of people suffering in the most isolated areas of the country, so they feel they cannot stop working; because we are improving lives here.”
