With many services interrupted and movements restricted, COVID-19 has caused severe disruption in everyday lives for most. To effectively cope with the COVID-19 lockdown and to ensure personal well-being of staff members, staff at FAO have been finding new ways to stay connected. In the light of this, FAO in Pakistan organized its first virtual tea which brought together staff members from all provinces of Pakistan and with active participation of staff members from various other country offices.

A number of colleagues started joining in through zoom about fifteen minutes before the dedicated time. Joining the tea early gave them an opportunity to say hello to each other and to inquire about the safety of each other’s families. Children could be seen running around in the background who occasionally came closer to the computer screen to check what people appearing on the screens were talking about!

FAO Representative in Pakistan, Minà Dowlatchahi presented the opening remarks stating how important it is to stay connected and to help each other get by during these difficult times. She also mentioned that the virtual tea is an initiative by FAO women’s committee that aims to bring staff together to discuss different topics and share experiences.  

The guest speakers included Rodney Mcbride, FAO Staff Counsellor and Aisha Kashif, UN Staff Counsellor in Pakistan. Rodney who joined the conversation from Rome shared his experience and advice from a more global cross cultural perspective while Aisha brought some important coping strategies and gender perspectives into the conversation.

The virtual tea was moderated by Seema Ghazi from the Communications Unit. Welcoming all participants, she mentioned that around 71 staff members had joined the virtual tea including colleagues from Turkey, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Indonesia, and Lao. Staff members were also joined by their families and children.

The topic for the virtual tea was coping with COVID-19. Each guest speaker talked about their experiences, sharing some basic tips on taking care of personal wellbeing, use of technology, coping with the reports of increased gender-based violence and the importance of social distancing, especially during the month of Ramadan.

The chat was lively with participants posting their questions, experiences and coping tips. Some staff members also shared their thoughts on dealing with anxiety and stress during the COVID-19 lockdown. Rodney and Aisha addressed all the questions and emphasized on the importance of developing routines, limiting use of social media and maintaining highest standards of hygiene during the current situation. 

Much of the discussion comprised of participants exchanging ideas on how to quickly recover from the post traumatic effects of COVID-19.

FAOR appreciated the participation of all staff members in her closing remarks while all participants raised their tea cups to celebrate the meeting.

“It is really great to see my colleagues. It has restored my energy,” commented one colleague.

Without a doubt, the virtual tea initiative by Women’s Committee is proving to be highly effective in bringing everyone together, to share experiences, get inspirations and also to destress during these uncertain times.