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Thanks, everyone. I apologize for the technology glitches at the start.
Thank you for having us today.
COVID-19 outbreaks are devastating in every context at this time, but nowhere will they be more profound than for the two billion people who are living in fragile and conflict-affected settings around the world.
In the past, CARE has responded to public health emergencies caused by the Zika, Ebola and West Nile viruses. We have also carried out a rapid gender analysis on the impacts of COVID-19 in nearly 40 countries and regions since March.
These analyses bring three key messages into focus. First, COVID-19 outbreaks have aggravated existing vulnerabilities, particularly for women and girls. Second, the secondary impacts—economic and social—can be even more devastating than the pandemic itself. Third, the after-effects will reverberate for years to come.
I'd like to highlight three key areas in particular need of attention. The first is health care. As health care resources are channelled into COVID-19, other areas are being neglected. Access to sexual and reproductive health services, including clean and safe deliveries, contraceptives, and pre- and post-natal care are among the worst casualties. For example, 73% of women surveyed by CARE in Afghanistan say they now have no access to family planning.
The second is the gender-based violence “shadow pandemic”. Quarantine measures have trapped many women with their abusers. The UN estimates that for every three months that lockdown measures continue, an additional 15 million gender-based cases of violence could occur. An additional 13 million child marriages may take place. Fragile and conflict-affected states are experiencing the worst increases. Venezuela, for example, reported a 65% increase in femicides between April 2019 and April 2020. Zimbabwe's national gender-based violence hotline reported a 70% increase over their pre-lockdown trends. Sadly, Somalia has seen a rapid rise in female genital mutilation.
The third is the hunger pandemic. Hunger hot spots are seeing exponential rises in food crises. Today, four countries are bordering on famine: the DRC, Nigeria, South Sudan and Yemen. Because women and girls play a greater role in the production, procurement and preparation of food, but tend to eat last and least when food is scarce, they face a much greater risk of hunger and malnutrition.