Baby formula for HIV+ teen mothers in Lima, Peru

Peru has now registered over 2,000,000 positive COVID-19 cases and a staggering 194,000 deaths. Peru’s per capita fatalities are now the highest in the world by a wide margin. For the majority of Peruvians social distancing is not an option and the crowded living conditions, work places, streets and markets are a breeding ground for the virus to spread. Compounding the problem has been the scarcity of vaccines with less than 20% of the adult population receiving at least one shot. Taken all together these realities have resulted in a humanitarian nightmare for Peru.  With the Mu variant beginning to take hold in Peru after the devastating Delta variant, Peru continues to be in crisis.

Faced with this crisis, Peru has been unable to effectively prevent and care for the nation’s most vulnerable due to its low number of ICU beds per capita, history of low investment in healthcare, and a severe shortage of medical professionals. ICU capacity is limited due to the number of beds but even more so by the small number of doctors and nurses who have this level of expertise. All of these issues raise the need to help build the healthcare infrastructure. To that end, VIDA made 24 shipments in 2020 and have already sent 22 shipments through September 1, 2021. Shipments contains ICU hospital beds, stretchers, exam tables along with hundreds of walkers and thousands of crutches as well as thousands of boxes of medical supplies including PPE and respiratory equipment and supplies to combat the virus.   VIDA is now working on an emergency food program in the hard hit communities outside of Cusco. In addition VIDA is working on securing al large donation of vitamins for the benefit of expectant mothers as well as children.

A major cost in this project is the ocean freight from Oakland to Callao. GlobalGiving donors play an important role in making these shipments possible. We hope you can join us in our mission to bring aid to Peru’s most vulnerable communities.

Peru has registered 1,850,290 positive COVID-19 cases and 64,103 deaths. Peru’s per capita casualties and fatalities are among the highest in the world. The latest surge has been a result of the emergence of the Brazilian variant. For the majority of Peruvians social distancing is not an option and the crowded living conditions, work places, streets and markets are a breeding ground for the virus to spread.

Faced with this crisis, Peru has been unable to effectively prevent and care for the nation’s most vulnerable due to its low number of ICU beds per capita, history of low investment in healthcare, and a severe shortage of medical professionals. ICU capacity is limited due to the number of beds but even more so by the small number of doctors and nurses who have this level of expertise. All of these issues raise the need to help build the healthcare infrastructure. To that end, VIDA made 24 shipments in 2020 and have already sent 14 shipments through May 2021. Shipments contains ICU hospital beds, stretchers, exam tables along with hundreds of walkers and thousands of crutches as well as thousands of boxes of medical supplies including PPE and respiratory equipment and supplies to combat the virus.

A major cost in this project is the ocean freight from Oakland to Callao. GlobalGiving donors play an important role in making these shipments possible. We hope you can join us in our mission to bring aid to Peru’s most vulnerable communities.

As of December 31, 2020 Peru has registered 1,012,614 positive COVID-19 cases and 37,621 deaths. Sadly Peru’s per capita casualties and fatalities are among the highest in the world. In spite of Peru’s increase in per capita GDP over the past 30 years, the shortage of doctors, the poor healthcare infrastructure compounded by the reality that 60% of the population that works in the informal economy. For the majority of Peruvians social distancing is not an option. They must go out of their modest lodgings to earn enough money to pay for food and to keep a roof over their head. As a result, the crowded streets and markets are a breeding ground for the virus to spread. However, the daily have fallen shortly due to improving weather and the reality that the country has been hit so hard. Entering spring in the southern hemisphere is a window of opportunity for Peru to build out their infrastructure before a potential second wave hits next fall.

Sadly, plagued by extreme poverty and devastating natural disasters, Peru lacks the resources to help them. This is how VIDA and you can help. To that end, VIDA has made 26 shipments carrying over $15 million in aid with hundreds of hospital beds, stretchers, exam tables along with hundreds of walkers and thousands of crutches as well as thousands of boxes of medical supplies including PPE and respiratory equipment and supplies to combat the virus.

A major cost in this project is the ocean freight from Oakland to Callao. GlobalGiving donors play an important role in making these shipments possible. We hope you can join us in our mission to bring aid to Peru’s most vulnerable communities.

As of September 1, 2020 Peru has registered over 657,108 positive COVID-19 cases and 29,608 deaths. While Peru has been hailed as the most responsive country in Latin America to the crisis due to its testing and lockdown, sadly Peru’s per capita casualties and fatalities are among the highest in the world. In spite of Peru’s increase in per capita GDP over the past 30 years, the fragility of that growth is being displayed among the 60% of the population that still works in the informal economy. For the majority of Peruvians social distancing is not an option. They must go out of their modest lodgings to earn enough money to pay for food and to keep a roof over their head. As a result, the crowded streets and markets are a breeding ground for the virus to spread. The young single impoverished mothers are perhaps the most vulnerable. Most have lost their meager daily wages due to the lockdown. As a result, they and their children have no shelter and our facing hunger.  Peruvians are sleeping in the streets waiting for a solution. Many of the clusters are near airports and squares in makeshift shelters and they lack the basic hygiene to prevent the virus and are unable to comply with social distancing measures.

Sadly, plagued by extreme poverty and devastating natural disasters, Peru lacks the resources to help them. All of these issues raise the need to help build the healthcare infrastructure. To that end, VIDA has made 21 shipments carrying hundreds of hospital beds, stretchers, exam tables along with hundreds of walkers and thousands of crutches as well as thousands of boxes of medical supplies including PPE and respiratory equipment and supplies to combat the virus.

A major cost in this project is the ocean freight from Oakland to Callao. GlobalGiving donors play an important role in making these shipments possible. We hope you can join us in our mission to bring aid to Peru’s most vulnerable communities.

VIDA closed out 2019 having made 24 shipments carrying over $22 million in aid. Many of these shipments represent a new partnership being led by Peru’s Ministry of Health who is spearheading an effort to upgrade and increase the number of beds available in Peru's hospital system. To that end, VIDA sent over 300 beds in 2019 along with 135 gurneys and 250 exam tables. Of course, this was in addition to the hundreds of pallets of medical supplies and hospital equipment that VIDA sends every year to Peru. However, the success of 2019 was quickly faded when confronted with COVID-19 outbreak, the latest in a series of disasters to beset Peru and expose and test the fragile healthcare system.

As of May 5, 2020 Peru has registered over 55,000 positive COVID-19 cases and over 1,500 deaths. While Peru is hailed as the most responsive country in Latin America to the crisis due to its testing and lockdown, sadly Peru only trails Brazil in the number of casualties and fatalities. In spite of Peru’s increase in per capita GDP over the past 30 years, the fragility of that growth is being displayed among the 60% of the population that still works in the informal ecinimy and who lack access to healthcare. The young single impoverished mothers are perhaps the most vulnerable. Most have lost their meager daily wages due to the lockdown. As a result, they and their children have no shelter and our facing hunger. The plight of these women is demonstrated by the 170,000 homeless now living on the streets in Lima and the mass exodus from Lima to rural areas. Peruvians are sleeping in the streets waiting for a solution. Many of the clusters are near airports and squares in makeshift shelters they lack the basic hygiene to prevent the virus. Also, crowding is frequent in the campsites, so it is hard to comply with social isolation measures.

Faced with this crisis, caravans of thousands of people are trekking on the highways carrying their little ones and all of their belongings trying to make it back to their remote towns of the Andes, Amazon and desert coast where they can find shelter and food. Sadly, plagued by extreme poverty and devastating natural disasters, these towns lack the resources to assist them when they arrive and the travelers are often the source of new outbreaks in these remote regions. All of these issues raise the need to help build the healthcare infrastructure. To that end, VIDA has shipped 6 containers carrying 200 plus ICU hospital beds, 50 plus stretchers, exam tables along with hundreds of walkers and thousands of crutches as well as thousands of boxes of medical supplies including PPE and respiratory equipment and supplies to combat the virus.

A major cost in this project is the ocean freight from Oakland to Callao. GlobalGiving donors play an important role in making these shipments possible. We hope you can join us in our mission to bring aid to Peru’s most vulnerable communities.