• Through the Ismaili CIVIC initiative, the Far East Jamat have promoted mask-wearing among local communities, to stop the spread of Covid-19 in the region.
    The Ismaili | 06 January 2021 | Southeast Asia

    Far East Jamat supports Covid-19 relief efforts

    Through the Ismaili CIVIC initiative, the Far East Jamat have promoted mask-wearing among local communities, to stop the spread of Covid-19 in the region.

As governments imposed stringent lockdowns with the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, Ismaili CIVIC in the Far East supported a number of initiatives to assist the communities of Singapore and Malaysia. The focus of these initiatives was to assist vulnerable segments of society who were at high-risk of facing financial and health-related challenges during the pandemic and ensuing lockdowns.

Masks for All SG was a Singaporean, community-driven initiative launched to provide face masks to vulnerable segments of the population including isolated seniors, students, families in need, migrant workers, and charitable organisations. The aim of this initiative was to educate and promote a culture of wearing masks and to help at-risk members of society to protect themselves from Covid-19.

Ismaili CIVIC contributed by providing 3,000 square feet of warehouse space in the heart of Singapore for this effort. The space served as a storage and distribution centre which became the central hub of Masks for All SG. As a result of this effort, over 600,000 masks were repackaged and distributed to over 72,000 beneficiaries (close to 1.5 percent of Singapore’s population) in a period of two months. Other products needed during lockdown such as thermometers and hand sanitiser were also provided.

Over 4,000 volunteers from different walks of life participated in Masks For All SG. The initiative was a collaboration between the Singapore government and civil society agencies. Collaboration partners included Prudential, Lalamove, SingHealth, Vlight, Contribute SG, Majurity Trust, Masks Sewn with Love, NPHVA, Team CareMask and The Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth (MCCY).

President of the Ismaili Council for the Far East, Zain Fancy, commented on the outreach support provided: “We are constantly seeking new ways to make a real impact and be part of collective action with leading partners. We are thankful for all the resources that combined together to launch this effort in an extremely difficult period. Masks For All SG and Contribute.sg embodies and shares the same values as Ismaili CIVIC, and this programme was an opportune circumstance for us to contribute in our small way.”