Poverty 🍛🍴 during Covid-19

السَّلاَمُ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَةُ اللهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ

Hello dear readers! This is my first time writing a blog, I hope it's beneficial for you guys. Actually the purpose I make this blog is because I would like to share my own understanding and personal experience based on the knowledge that I gain from this course which is Sustainable Development: Issues, Principles and Practices.

Like the saying, 'not knowing is hence, not loving', so let me introduce myself first. My name is Nur Aliahanis Binti Yunus (2114032) and I'm a first year student of the Islamic International University of Malaysia (IIUM). I'm a law student from Ahmad Ibrahim Kulliyyah of Law (AIKOL). This is a little bit of everything about me.

To be truthful, when I was assigned for this course I was a little bit confused and nervous when I read about the name of this course; Sustainable Development: Issues, Principles and Practices. Sophisticated title, I must say. But aside from that I got excited and amazed that we all without realizing we are actually working on sustainable development. This vision is actually interconnected with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) adopted by the United Nations in 2015. I believe that these goals are like a universal call to action to lead a prosperity and ease life.

17 Sustainable Development Goals

As Dr. Hassan explains about 17 SDGs specifically on the part of the Zero Hunger goal, its aim is to end hunger, achieve food security, etc. I suddenly recalled that so many people are affected by this Covid-19 pandemic. Majorities of the countries around the globe have suffered a more long-lasting economic damage. Reality hits people like a ton of bricks with only the existence of a new virus when they suddenly experience living with poverty for short periods of time. With the poverty rate at 5.6% in 2019 when it's spreading, we can now conclude that it has increased to at least 8.4% of all households in 2020 due to the pandemic.

Fortunately, some families have coping mechanisms—assets they can sell, assistance from governments, relatives, and neighbors but some do not. If we take no measures on coping with the poverty issue, over longer periods of time, poverty will leave permanent scars—malnutrition, susceptibility to disease, missed schooling etc. When there is a will, there's a way. Therefore, short term and long-term planning at various scales and levels have to be established to eradicate poverty. In this case, I would like to focus on the Social Protection System. It is a system to help the poor and vulnerable to cope with crises and shocks, find jobs, invest in the health and education of their children, as well as protecting the aging population. Some of them are:

First, the unemployment insurance system. In this program, the government instituted an unemployment insurance system available to those in sectors that take a bit longer to recover from economic crises such as tourism and retail businesses. In other words, It is a type of state-provided insurance that pays money to individuals on a weekly basis when they lose their job due to a lack of available work and at no fault of their own.

Second, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) as part of the social protection mechanism. Social protection programs provided by the NGOs are available in various forms such as basic daily needs, services, education, transportation, and medical treatment. Soup kitchens by churches or community groups, such as Pertiwi Soup Kitchen and Kechara Soup Kitchen Society, provide free meals for the homeless and B40 families all year round.

Uniquely, in Malaysia, There was an initiative to minimize the poor's burden where kind and caring citizens encouraged them to wave a white flag in front of their house. It is the sign of solidarity initiated by the Malaysian citizen to help the needy through the #RakyatJagaRakyat hashtag campaign. In response to flying white flag, neighbours, celebrities and businesses will offer help, provide food and other essentials to them. It makes them more reachable when several #benderaputih groups have been created on Facebook to help users post pictures and addresses where assistance is required. Others shared photos of groceries and essential items they could spare, as well as information on nearby food banks.

Lastly, I believe that the social protection system and #RakyatJagaRakyat hashtag campaign meant a lot to people who are suffering for the impacts of Covid-19. By learning about this issue, I am inspired to make a change and become more empathetic towards other people around me. Sometimes, we are too busy to check on our relatives, neighbours and friends that might suffer from hunger and poverty. It is an eye opener for me and I am looking forward to learn more things about SDGs on the next class.

That's all for me, I hope you also get some input from my reflective personal experience. Thank you for spending your time reading this blog and see you in the next post! <3