The World Bank has approved an emergency US$20 million (approximately PGK70m) project for Papua New Guinea (PNG) to provide rapid support the country’s COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic response.
The emergency support will fund rapid health support for PNG focused on protecting health workers and others in the response effort, helping PNG health authorities quickly scale-up testing capacity, and strengthening public education to combat the spread of the virus.
The project, funded through the World Bank Group’s $14 billion global COVID-19 response package, includes funding for a new container-based laboratory in the capital, Port Moresby, as well as lab equipment, medical supplies, and funding to transport COVID-19 samples to laboratories within PNG and to Australia for quality assurance. The project will be implemented in close coordination with the World Health Organization (WHO).
The emergency funding will also deliver personal protective equipment for PNG health workers, including masks, goggles, gloves and gowns; supplies for infection prevention such as isolation units and incinerators for waste disposal; and critical intensive care equipment including ventilators and oxygen flow regulators, among other items.
In addition, the emergency project will fund an extensive nation-wide public education and community engagement campaign, to be delivered across television, radio, social media and SMS blasts, aimed at reducing the spread of coronavirus across the country.
“This assistance will not only ensure we are able to better protect our frontline health workers but will also enable us to improve our testing capacity and build on public awareness and education, which are central to our country’s fight against the coronavirus. At a time when the region, and the world, needs to come together to combat the spread of COVID-19, we are proud to stand with the government and people of PNG in this difficult time,” said Stefano Mocci, World Bank Country Manager for Papua New Guinea.
The commitment is part of a wider package of World Bank support to tackle a number of PNG’s most pressing health challenges.
The World Bank is now preparing several other projects to support countries throughout the Pacific region in their response to the COVID-19 pandemic. These will be announced in the coming weeks.
Original source: World Bank
Published on 14 April 2020
