Letters | Coronavirus: listen to people’s fears in Asia and invest in mental health

Name: ‘Our food systems are failing,’ UN warns of impending global food emergency amid Covid-19 pandemic
Uploaded: 2020-09-21T22:40:14.000Z
Duration: 45 s
Description: ‘Our food systems are failing,’ UN warns of impending global food emergency amid Covid-19 pandemic

A new inter-agency study has highlighted the importance of addressing emotional well-being, particularly among those most vulnerable to Covid-19. More than ever, we need accessible and localised mental health support

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A volunteer sprays disinfectant in the Shwedagon Pagoda compound as a preventive measure against Covid-19, in Yangon on March 31. A new inter-agency Red Cross and UN study has confirmed the emotional toll on millions across four Asian countries, including Myanmar. Photo: AFP

Letters

Published: 6:40am, 22 Sep 2020Updated: 6:40am, 22 Sep 2020

This year has been tough. Many have been living in fear with daily worries – fear of Covid-19, worrying about our loved ones, our health, our jobs and the future.

A new inter-agency Red Cross and United Nations study confirms that Covid-19 is taking a massive emotional toll on millions of people across four Asian countries, where many already face disasters or poverty.

The report, which analyses data from Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan and Indonesia, highlights the importance of greater action to address emotional well-being – particularly among those most vulnerable to Covid-19, as well as its crippling socio-economic side effects.

Among other questions, participants were asked how often they worried about a list of potential fears and anxieties. It must be of serious concern to all of us that in a survey of nearly 5,000 people across four countries, some seven out of 10 people worry about restricted access to food supplies.

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‘Our food systems are failing,’ UN warns of impending global food emergency amid Covid-19 pandemic

This is far from the only topic that causes anxiety. A similarly high number of people across the four Asian countries fear civil unrest, while nearly four out of five worry about losing their jobs.