Following an overwhelming response from the British public, the U.K. government will double its support for the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) Coronavirus Appeal, according to a statement today by the International Development Secretary.

The Coronavirus Appeal provides aid to refugees living in overcrowded camps around the world and the U.K. government will match public funding up to £10 million. Over the course of nine days, the public donated £9.8 million. A £25 public donation, along with a match from the government, could purchase essential hygiene kits to two families.

The DEC is a coalition of 14 different U.K. charities. To prevent the spread of the virus, they are providing frontline doctors and workers with proper equipment, supplying food to those who may be malnourished, and distributing clean water and soap to families.

The total pandemic aid now pledged by the U.K. is now £774 million.

Human Rights Watch released a statement Monday announcing suspected Covid-19 outbreaks in recent weeks in Egyptian prisons and police stations.

Leaked letters, witness accounts, and credible reports from local rights groups and media indicated 129 suspected cases, 64 positive cases, and 14 deaths from Covid-19 complications. Overcrowding, lack of sanitation, and limited resources and medical care have turned these prisons and police stations into a hotbed for the pandemic.

Most inmates rely on families to deliver disinfectants or medicines, according to accounts. At the Minya Maximum Security Prison, a letter smuggled out by two inmates highlighted a great number of prisoners with Covid-19 symptoms, but an absence of sufficient care. Water cuts were routine and lasted up to 20 hours at a time. Those who objected to their conditions were severely punished. Punishments could include beatings, transfers, or the confiscation of necessary hygiene products.

These revelations affirm longstanding concerns about conditions in Egypt’s prisons. In April, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights urged Egypt to release those convicted of non-violent offenses and held in pre-trial detention. “Egypt’s prisons and detention facilities are often overcrowded, unsanitary, and suffer from a lack of resources,” the statement read. “Detainees are routinely denied access to adequate medical care and treatment.”

One out of every three members of the White Mountain Apache Tribe who was tested for Covid-19 has tested positive, according to an update published today by the Tribe’s Emergency Operations Center.

With a population of around 13,420 and just over 2,000 cases overall, one out of seven members has contracted the virus.

The high percentage is due in part to a testing strategy that focuses on high-risk individuals, according to Arizona Central. The large numbers overall can be attributed to many families members sharing houses. Water shortages that the Tribe suffers during summer months are another factor.

There may be no water for showers or even an absence of drinking water in some reservation communities, according to Tribe Chairwoman Gwendena Lee-Gatewood. A majority of the reservation’s population depends on a small well field, but the production has declined in recent years. In summer the areas of Cibecue and Carrizo are particularly affected. The Tribe won a settlement in 2010 to fund a drinking water project, which was then revised again in 2018.

After Arizona reopened earlier this summer, cases of coronavirus spiked, and the state has since reimposed some restrictions in order to contain the surge.

A study conducted by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that access to safe and reliable water in two provinces in Vanuatu is a greater challenge for menstruating women, people with disabilities, and those with incontinence.

The Water, Women, and Disability study highlighted that while 93 percent of people are likely to collect water themselves, only 66 percent of people with disabilities were able to do so. Those who did collect water felt unsafe due to fears of abuse from others. The study also noted the distance and inaccessibility of latrines and sanitation stations as a challenge for those with disabilities, and the importance of this access during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The report analyzed 11,446 households and 56,402 individuals in Vanuatu. According to the Vanuatu Ministry of Health, there have been no confirmed cases of Covid-19 on the island as of July 15.

The study was conducted in partnership with World Vision and funded by the Australian government’s Water for Women Fund.

Oxfam, along with the U.K. Department for International Development and the consumer goods company Unilever, began a 12-month program in Nepal and the Philippines to improve hygiene practices to prevent the spread of Covid-19. The program will build on Oxfam’s handwashing initiative Mum’s Magic Hands, which uses storytelling to encourage good hygiene.

The organization will train community volunteers to communicate the curriculum in the field as well as remotely through digital messaging, social media, or local news networks. Because women and girls are disproportionately affected by the pandemic, the new program will design activities specifically focused on challenges they face. Oxfam will also focus on its home territory by implementing more handwashing stands in Manchester and Oxford.

There have been just over 16,000 confirmed cases of the novel virus in Nepal and 56,259 cases in the Philippines, according to the World Health Organization. The UK has close to 900,000 confirmed cases, and has recently begun reopening its economy.