Pakistan gets COVID-19 assistance package from USAID

Islamabad : To cope with global pandemic COVID-19, the government of United States (US) on Saturday announced another new medical assistance package to Pakistan, said a statement issued by the Ministry of National Health Services Regulation and Coordination (NHSR&C).

The assistance package was announced during a ceremony held here which was attended by Federal Health Minister Dr Faisal Sultan, officials of US embassy in Pakistan and officials of the United State Agency for International Development (USAID).

According to the statement, the medical donation package consisted of safety accessories and equipment for more than 3,200 frontline health workers and 600 ICU and operation theater staffers serving the nation while putting their lives in risk. Besides this, the package would also help in patient oxygen monitoring support for over 1,200 hospital beds across the country which, as per Dr Faisal Sultan, is a landmark step.

The donation includes other necessary equipment for COVID-19 patients in Pakistan. Moreover, the US government also announced $3.5 million funding for local procurement of health related accessories in respect of supporting overall pandemic response.

The donation package was formally received by Dr Sultan at the ceremony. In his remarks on the occasion, Dr Sultan said that he was appreciating the decision of the US government. “We are thankful to the US for helping us in this crucial time”, he said, adding that the country has received such welcoming responses from the US government in the past in each difficult time. He also recalled that this effort is a true reflection of the mutual relations between the US and our country.

While highlighting the ongoing vaccination in the country against pandemic, Dr Sultan said a large number of the population in the country has been administered vaccination and the extensiveness of the third variant turned significantly low.

The minister said that the entire world suffered badly from this pandemic, adding that it’s not being faced by only one or few countries.

On the concession, the US embassy charge de-affair Lesslie Viguerie said that the coronavirus is the biggest challenge for the entire world as, he said, millions of people are affected by this novel disease.

Viguerie maintained that the US embassy is working in joint cooperation with the National Disaster Management Authority and Pakistan ministry of health. “It was the result of efforts of all relevant sections that today we are handing over this donation package to the ministry of health,” he said.