Macra na Feirme has established a management group to deal with the impact of Covid-19 and has moved to suspend meetings and competitions to minimise the threat of the coronavirus.
In a statement sent to members across the country, the rural youth organisation’s CEO Denis Duggan and president Thomas Duffy outlined what measures the association will be taking to limit impact.
Measures
The statement highlighted: “The safety and well-being of our members, staff and partners are the priority for our organisation – and as such we have undertaken precautions and measures related to minimising the threat posed by Covid-19.
“We are acting in accordance with advice from the HSE [Health Safety Executive] and the chief medical officer and are monitoring the situation daily.
The board has established a management group to oversee our Crisis Management Plan, and has delegated authority to implement any and all public health advice from the HSE and Government in responding to Covid-19.
“With immediate effect, all competitions are suspended including the national debating final scheduled to take place this Saturday evening in Rosscarbery, Co. Cork.”
It was added that all competition finals “will be re-scheduled for a future date when the threat is reduced or eliminated”.
“Again, we will follow the appropriate public health advice before confirming any rescheduled dates,” the joint statement added.
“All club or county executives are encouraged if they want to maintain their meeting schedules, to use technology such as Microsoft Teams, Google Meet or Zoom which all offer limited free audio and video calls,” the email said.
Macra HQ
It was also pointed out that all Macra na Feirme staff based in the organisation’s national office are being advised to work from home until March 29.
Anyone who wishes to get in touch are asked to do so by email until this time, while “where possible, national office phone lines will be diverted to individual mobile numbers”.
Finally, it was noted that foreign travel for work has been suspended for staff and volunteers over the next few weeks.
We appreciate that this is a significant disruption to Macra activities and normal life. These measures are taken with the best interests of Macra members and their families in mind.
“We appreciate your cooperation and understanding at this time, and we will continue to implement the public health advice as it evolves,” the Macra leadership’s statement concluded.