The Take

Without much of a health budget, Senegal is being championed for controlling the novel coronavirus. From early-detection mobile kits to 3D printed ventilators, the West African nation is demonstrating a possible model in curbing COVID-19, relying on their experience of managing the Ebola outbreak.

In this episode:

Nicolas Haque (@nicolashaque), Al Jazeera journalist in Dakar, Senegal. Anta James, a regional representative for Catholic Relief Services. Dan Honig (@rambletastic), assistant professor at John Hopkins University. Shannon Underwood, an immigration attorney in Dakar, Senegal.

For more:

In Pictures: Life in Dakar during coronavirus pandemic

Senegal: Social distancing, hand-washing difficult amid poverty

Senegal: 10-minute coronavirus test may be on its way - for $1

Connect with The Take: Twitter (@AJTheTake), Instagram (@ajthetake) and Facebook (@TheTakePod).

Indonesia had one doctor per 10,000 people at the onset of the coronavirus’ spread. Now there are even fewer, as doctors are dying on the frontlines of the pandemic without adequate protective gear. Indonesia is on track to be one of the next hotspots for COVID-19 cases, and the government’s late response to the pandemic has raised fears of doomsday mortality rates.

In this episode:

Jessica Washington (@JesWashington), Al Jazeera journalist in Jakarta, Indonesia.

For more:

Indonesia protests: Burials of COVID-19 victims raise fears

Indonesia bans end of Ramadan exodus amid coronavirus pandemic

Indonesian health workers dying amid equipment shortages

Connect with The Take: Twitter (@AJTheTake), Instagram (@ajthetake) and Facebook (@TheTakePod).

As China's coronavirus lockdown recedes, it's left fear in its wake. Foreigners are now on the receiving end of heightened public scrutiny and discrimination as the government says it's trying to prevent importing new cases. Videos circulated on social media showing Africans in Guangzhou facing forced evictions and testing, provoking a rare open critique from African leaders. The Take hears from non-Chinese residents on life as a foreigner during the pandemic.

In this episode:

Katrina Yu (@Katmyu), Al Jazeera journalist in Beijing, China.

For more:

African nationals 'mistreated, evicted' in China over coronavirus

Coronavirus: Why are Africans in China being targeted?

'Unacceptable': Nigeria condemns treatment of citizens in China

Connect with The Take: Twitter (@AJTheTake), Instagram (@ajthetake) and Facebook (@TheTakePod).

As scientists rush to find a way to tackle COVID-19, some think an old and widely used vaccine for tuberculosis could be an answer. The BCG vaccine is still routinely given in many countries, and there’s evidence that it might protect against the novel coronavirus. We speak with scientists in South Africa, the U.S. and Canada on the latest research.

In this episode:

Dr. Nokawanda Sithole from Tygerberg Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa; Dr. Gonzalo Otazu from the New York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic Medicine; Dr. Madhu Pai from McGill University in Montreal, Canada; and Professor Andreas Diacon, from TASK in Cape Town, South Africa.

For more:

Where does the world stand on a coronavirus vaccine?

Scientists search for effective COVID-19 treatments

Doctor's Note: Why will it take so long for a COVID-19 vaccine?

Connect with The Take: Twitter (@AJTheTake), Instagram (@ajthetake) and Facebook (@TheTakePod).

As foreign-born doctors in the US are fighting to keep COVID-19 patients alive, deportation is also a lingering fear. Meanwhile, doctors of color in the UK's National Health Service are the first to die from the novel coronavirus disease. We speak to journalists in the US and UK on the hardships that non-white doctors are facing.

In this episode:

Aina Khan, (@ainajkhan), a freelance journalist for Al Jazeera in London. Ashish Malhotra (@amalhotra2), an Al Jazeera producer and reporter with the Los Angeles Times.

For more:

Muslim minority doctors first to die on front line of UK pandemic

UK doctor who urged PM to provide protective gear dies of virus

Foreign doctors on US frontlines of COVID-19 fear deportation

US companies make medical supplies for New York to beat virus

Connect with The Take: Twitter (@AJTheTake), Instagram (@ajthetake) and Facebook (@TheTakePod).

Imagine a living, flying cloud of voracious grasshoppers so dense that it blocks out the sun. That's the scene in East Africa and parts of Asia as swarms of desert locusts are destroying crops — and if left unchecked, the pests could multiply 500 times over by June, leaving millions facing severe food insecurity.

In this episode:

Cyril Ferrand, a resilience team leader with the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization.

For more:

Alarm as coronavirus curbs disrupt East Africa fight on locusts

Can East Africa's locust plague be stopped?

In Pictures: Desert locusts swarm parts of East Africa

Connect with The Take: Twitter (@AJTheTake), Instagram (@ajthetake) and Facebook (@TheTakePod).

Mexico’s drug war has left tens of thousands of casualties in secret graves. About 60,000 people have disappeared since 2006. While defying the threats of gangs and criminal organizations, the mothers of the missing are now searching for their relatives, no longer waiting for the government to fulfill promises.

In this episode:

John Holman (@johnholman100), Al Jazeera English journalist covering Latin America.

For more:

More than 61,000 missing in Mexico amid spiralling drug violence

Warrior Hounds: The Mexican women searching for their disappeared

Mexico drug war: Victims' families look for relatives' bodies

Connect with The Take: Twitter (@AJTheTake), Instagram (@ajthetake) and Facebook (@TheTakePod).

For the Sámi indigenous people, the year begins in spring when the reindeer calves are born. Nature guides how they live their lives, but they can't read nature like they used to. A warming planet is threatening their way of life in northern Sweden, and efforts to save their land and the reindeer are reigniting old tensions with the Swedish government.

In this episode:

Paul Rhys (@pallerhys), Al Jazeera journalist based in Sweden.

For more:

Sweden’s indigenous Sami people threatened by climate change

Climate change: The state of our atmosphere

Climate change or coronavirus? 'Pick your evil', protesters say

Connect with The Take: Twitter (@AJTheTake), Instagram (@ajthetake) and Facebook (@TheTakePod).

For millions of India's migrant workers, walking hundreds of kilometers to find a safe haven is the only option during the country's 21-day lockdown. But on the journey, out-of-work daily-wage earners are facing starvation and harassment from police. As the country continues to grapple with an ill-equipped health care system, the coronavirus crisis has further revealed India's systemic class issues.

In this episode:

Elizabeth Puranam (@LizPuranam), Al Jazeera's correspondent in India.

For more:

India: Coronavirus lockdown sees exodus from cities

Indian migrant workers sprayed with disinfectant chemical

Can healthcare in poor nations withstand coronavirus?

Connect with The Take: Twitter (@AJTheTake), Instagram (@ajthetake) and Facebook (@TheTakePod).

April 8, 2020: We've updated this episode to include details about Liz's ability to report from the field.

Faustina Tay sent dozens of chilling voice messages pleading for help. She said her employers in Lebanon were beating her. "I'm scared they might kill me," said the 23-year-old. Her detailed messages have revealed a disturbing reality in Lebanon, where two domestic workers die every week. We hear from the Al Jazeera journalist who first reported this story.

In this episode:

Timour Azhari (@timourazhari), Al Jazeera journalist in Beirut, Lebanon; Patricia, a caseworker with Canada-based advocacy group, This Is Lebanon.

For more:

The desperate final days of a domestic worker in Lebanon

Lebanon to investigate Ghanaian domestic worker's death

Undocumented in Lebanon: No papers, no coronavirus test

Connect with The Take: Twitter (@AJTheTake), Instagram (@ajthetake) and Facebook (@TheTakePod).