The United Nations Development Program is training people in Yemen to make soap, in an attempt to contain the spread of Covid-19 in the country.

The program, funded by the EU, Sida, and the UNDP rapid response facility, helps small, home-based enterprises produce soap. Once the training is completed, each participant is granted $600 to start their own soap production station.

In Yemen, 18 million people are in need of water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance. Some larger families might share a single bar of soap, according to one program participant. But he said that most of the time they can’t afford soap.

The goal for the program is to offer families a new source of income and distribute affordable soap to communities during the pandemic. The hope is that those making soap will produce 5,500 bottles a month.

Government neglect has led to a healthcare system in Hungary that is critically unprepared to handle the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Human Rights Watch. The international organization’s investigation found inadequate conditions and a lack of necessary supplies and equipment.

There is little soap, sanitizer, and proper cleaning throughout hospitals and health centers, and a lack of sanitation products and PPE for health workers and their patients, HRW found. Many hospitals do not have enough single-bed rooms for those who have contracted the virus as well as insufficient data and testing. HRW highlighted that the Hungarian government has not been abiding to its obligations under the right to health, an international law that dictates countries must have sufficient sanitation and healthy working conditions for workers and patients.

“People shouldn’t fear that going to the hospital will expose them to conditions that will make them sicker,” HRW deputy program director Tom Porteous said. “Hungarian authorities need to urgently put in place reforms and more investments to project patients and health works from infection and death.”

HRW interviewed two dozen former public hospital patients who had contracted infections while getting treatment, or relatives of deceased patients, as well as medical staff and health experts.

In rural and urban communities throughout Africa, 20 million people gained access to clean water for the first time, according to an African Development Bank report. Published by the Bank’s evaluation unit, the report assessed the organization’s 400 water and agriculture projects from 2005 to 2016.

The assessment highlighted not only the importance of water and sanitation during the pandemic, but benefits of better crop production, too. The Bank’s agricultural water management program reduced the time needed to fetch water for domestic and agricultural use, while increasing crop production and diversity.

Though there were successes, the report also noted some failures such as poor service delivery and limited financing in sanitation and hygiene. In the future, the Bank will focus on immediate responses for Covid-19 and food security as well as long-term goals for water in agriculture and health.

The Portland Water District, along with a lab at Saint Joseph’s College, has begun testing wastewater for inactive SARS-CoV-2 particles to better understand surges in Covid-19 cases.

The district, which serves Maine’s largest city, is one of many communities across the nation who are testing wastewater to monitor virus levels.

“Evaluating concentrations at the community level can help us monitor the number of cases including symptomatic, pre-symptomatic, sub-clinical, and asymptomatic cases,” St. Joseph’s principal investigator Yolanda Brooks said in a statement. “I’m excited to kick off this important project.”

The first samples were collected at the Portland and Westbrook wastewater plants and sent to St. Joseph’s for analysis. The district is planning a three-month testing program with the support of the Department of Environmental Protection and the Department of Health and Human Services. The results will be shared at the end.

The program aims to improve detection limits, address rural challenges, and lower the cost of sampling. If the project does well, it will be shared with other water districts in Maine.

The United States government contributed $500,000 to UNICEF for the construction of handwashing stations in South Africa, according to the U.S. Agency for International Development last week. The facilities will be implemented in vulnerable communities and informal settlements as an effort to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

“Hand washing with soap is a simple and effective way to help slow the spread of COVID-19 and other infectious diseases, but for too many people this is not possible,” UNICEF Representative to South Africa Jama Gulaid said in a statement.

UNICEF is working with partners Envirosan and World Vision South Africa in both the installation of the stations and community education. Construction of the handwashing stations began in early June in Northern Johannesburg, with the hope to build facilities in 150 locations throughout the country by the end of August.

The United States commitment to South Africa’s Covid-19 response is over $44 million.