Singaporean In Shanghai Lockdown Experiences Woes Of Food Shortage
Singapore has made progress in living with Covid-19 as authorities gradually relaxed various safety measures to accord citizens greater freedom.
However, in Shanghai, citizens are still in lockdown as China trudges on with its ‘zero-Covid’ strategy. To make matters worse, a food shortage has led to residents struggling to get basic groceries delivered.
A 33-year-old Singaporean, Mr Tan, currently living in Shanghai, said he could not buy food online due to high demand. It was a challenge even to put together a meal.
Thankfully, his neighbours were kind enough to help, sharing groceries and helping him get by.
Singaporean in Shanghai could not get meals during lockdown
Currently, China is facing one of its worst Covid-19 outbreaks since the beginning of the pandemic. And Shanghai has been the epicentre of it.
On Saturday, the city recorded about 23,000 cases, although most were asymptomatic, reported TIME.
In accordance with China’s ‘zero-Covid’ tolerance strategy, residents in most parts of the city have been in an extended lockdown for weeks.
Speaking to Shin Min Daily News, several Singaporeans living in Shanghai shared that settling their 3 meals have become problematic.
One such Singaporean is 33-year-old Mr Tan. A resident in Shanghai’s Pudong district, he has been living in lockdown since 1 Apr.
Initially, authorities said the lockdown would last 5 days, but it has since dragged on. Not expecting the extended lockdown, Mr Tan and many others did not have sufficient food supplies.
They can only resort to buying groceries or meals online if they can’t leave their homes to get food. However, Mr Tan could not secure any food because of the high demand.
Thankfully, he related that his neighbours have been helpful, and those who managed to buy food have been sharing their supplies.
Food & water shortage in city
Another Singaporean, Ms Zheng, has been living with her husband in Shanghai for 16 years.
She shared with Shin Min Daily News that they managed to stock up on food before the lockdown. For the time being, they are still getting by with these supplies.
However, those who live on Shanghai’s outskirts have not been as fortunate.
Ms Zheng said because there aren’t as many supermarkets in those areas, a friend’s son is now facing a water shortage.
To tide him over, Ms Zheng has been delivering supplies to him.
Growing discontent as lockdown drags on
Since 28 Mar, large parts of Shanghai, with a population of 26 million, have been in strict lockdown, reported TIME.
This means residents cannot leave their homes, relying solely on grocery delivery apps and government supplies for food.
However, the city has also been hit with food shortages due to logistical challenges as drivers are also locked down.
According to The Straits Times (ST), Chinese officials have stepped up assistance in supplying residents with basic groceries like eggs, milk, vegetables, and meat.
Despite this, some areas have not received the supplies. Delivery apps also can no longer keep up with the growing demand for necessities.
Discontent has been growing amongst residents as the lockdown drags on. Videos online have also shown residents shouting and protesting for supplies from their homes.
https://twitter.com/AidenHeung/status/1511943651017912320
This has led to growing concerns as many took to Chinese social networks to complain about the lack of food.
Chinese authorities are now moving to address these concerns. On Saturday (9 Apr), officials said delivery and logistics personnel would be allowed to work.
Grocery stores and e-commerce retails will also be allowed to open if conditions allow.
Hope things start looking up soon
While growing Covid-19 numbers may be a very real and scary prospect, so is being stuck in lockdown with insufficient food and water.
And although Shanghai is still seeing a large number of cases, things might be starting to look up.
According to TIME, officials said on 9 Apr that they would be lifting lockdown in areas with no positive cases within 14 days.
We hope things will change for the better for Shanghai residents real soon.
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Featured image adapted from Shin Min Daily News and AnthonyReed83 on Twitter.
