Maskela to donate over 400 masks to Singapore Migrant Workers

As COVID-19 cases continue to rise in Singapore, one community is being hit the hardest: the foreign migrant workers. 

Of the 6,500+ cases in the city-state, more than 90 per cent of cases reported over the weekend were among migrants living in cramped dormitories. Migrant workers, mostly from countries including India, Bangladesh and China, now account for almost three quarters of the country’s total coronavirus cases.

Spearheaded by Minster Sim Ann, MaskForce is a community-led initiative mobilising donors, NGOs and the private sector to produce and distribute mask kits to migrant workers and domestic helpers. Each mask kit contains two reusable cloth masks that have a filter pocket as well as one surgical mask, which can be used as a filter. Reusable masks reduce the spread of germs while the filter insert in these masks provide additional filtration.

“Migrant workers are an integral part of the Singapore’s workforce. They contribute in many ways, from building our infrastructure, providing essential services to taking care of our communities. Singapore is committed to ensuring their safety and well-being during the current COVID-19 outbreak," said Minister Sim Ann.

Maskela, a social enterprise created to fight the spread of COVID-19 by changing the stigma of face masks and providing masks to those in need, will be using the proceeds from their first week of sales to purchase 400 surgical masks to support MaskForce. The donation, which will also include 20 sustainable Maskela masks, will be dropped off at the Migrant Workers' Center the week of April 20th by the company's founder, Carol Chen. 

If you would like to donate to this cause, you can do so here.

Thank you to everyone who contributed to make this possible. Follow Maskela on Instagram at @wearmaskela to see the drop!