---
title: "Three ways our programmes are fighting coronavirus"
description: "We all have a role to play in preventing the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19). The advice from health experts has been clear: wash your hands and limit contact with others."
url: "https://www.nrc.no/perspectives/2020/three-ways-our-programmes-are-fighting-coronavirus"
language: "en"
published: "2020-03-28T09:18:33Z"
modified: "2020-03-28T09:18:33Z"
---

![Al-Ezi Majed, 6, is washing his hands and face from the only water point in Souk Al-Lail camp in Amran city where more than fifty families live. Photo: Nasser Abdulkareem/NRC](https://www.nrc.no/globalassets/images/coronavirus/2.jpg)

Coronavirus

# Three ways our programmes are fighting coronavirus

Rebecca Crombleholme Published 28. Mar 2020

[Global](https://www.nrc.no/themes?categoryId=23) [Coronavirus](https://www.nrc.no/themes?categoryId=347)

Al-Ezi Majed, 6, is washing his hands and face from the only water point in Souk Al-Lail camp in Amran city, Yemen, where more than 50 families live. This photo was taken in 2019, before the start of the coronavirus outbreak. Photo: Nasser Abdulkareem/NRC

This article was first published more than 6 years ago

We all have a role to play in preventing the spread of the coronavirus (Covid-19). The advice from health experts has been clear: wash your hands and limit contact with others.

But for millions of vulnerable people who have been forced to flee their homes due to violence and persecution, this message is empty. According to [WHO and UNICEF](https://www.unwater.org/water-facts/handhygiene/), 40 per cent of the global population live without basic handwashing facilities. Some of these people live in overcrowded camps, or in areas where hospitals have been bombed and healthcare systems have collapsed.

Here at the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), we are scaling up our global water, sanitation and hygiene promotion (WASH) programmes to respond to the coronavirus crisis. Here are three ways we’re fighting the spread of the virus among the world’s most vulnerable communities.

### #1 Handwashing saves lives

Good hygiene practices such as handwashing are among the most effective ways to preventing viruses from spreading.

NRC is working to equip schools, community centres and aid distribution sites in several countries with handwashing facilities and soap. The provision of safe water, sanitation and hygienic conditions plays an essential role in protecting human health during infectious disease outbreaks – including Covid-19.

![In 2019, we provided this school in Herat, Afghanistan, with toilets, clean hand washing facilities and hygiene kits. This project was delivered as part of a collaboration between our education and WASH programmes. Photo: Enayatullah Azad/NRC ](https://www.nrc.no/globalassets/images/coronavirus/nrc-enayatullah-azad-6-of-16.jpg)

### #2 Awareness is key

Promoting safe hygiene behaviour is even more important at a time like this. NRC is partnering with national health authorities to distribute information about preventing the spread of the virus.

Handwashing promotion can only work if communities are fully engaged and informed. This involves building trust and mutual understanding by engaging local people in communications and decision making.

Near the start of the outbreak, we delivered hygiene messaging to thousands of children in schools in Iran, benefitting both Iranian children and Afghan refugees. Photo: Mani Khaleghi/NRC

### #3 Rumours and misinformation cause fear

It’s not just important to give correct information during a crisis, but also to dispel false information. Misinformation can spread like wildfire and cause significant damage to public health. We are working around the clock to monitor and respond to this.

Our Global WASH Manager, Ammar Fawzi, has drawn parallels with the Ebola response to emphasise the importance of tackling misinformation:

"We saw with the Ebola response that there was a lot of fear. Fear leads to misinformation and rumours, which leads to stigmatisation and people being discriminated against and denied other services. We are trying our best to stop that with the coronavirus response through a lot of community engagement."

Community engagement includes identifying the right people to engage with, whether these be community leaders, taxi drivers, schoolteachers or shop owners, to understand the situation. This is important not just in face-to-face situations, but on social media too.

In preparation for the coronavirus reaching the region, we conducted awareness-raising campaigns in Afghanistan across all displacement sites in Herat and Badghis, reaching over 80,000 people in total. Photo: Marziyeh Rafiee/NRC

NRC has extensive experience in dealing with epidemics and crises in the world’s most vulnerable areas, and we are now rapidly adapting our work to respond to the coronavirus. We need a global push to limit the spread of the virus.

You are already playing an important role in preventing the spread of the virus by washing your hands and limiting contact with others. But the only way to truly #FlattenTheCurve is by making sure that those living in the world’s most vulnerable areas can do this too.

**[Please support our coronavirus response today](https://www.nrc.no/emergencies/coronavirus)**