Extra funds for Covid-19 response overseas

Extra funds worth £1.5 million are to be committed by the Scottish Government to aid the response to COVID-19 in Malawi, Rwanda and Zambia.

By the end of the year, a total of £5 million will have been invested by the Scottish Government’s International Development Fund, a commitment which has led to further support both from the NHS and charitable sources for projects including PPE distribution, vaccine rollout, online learning, healthcare services, and research.

Support from the Humanitarian Emergency Fund has gone towards COVID-19 response efforts for vulnerable communities in countries such as Syria, Yemen, Somalia, South Sudan, Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Projects that have been supported include installing an oxygen plant facility in the Chitambo Hospital in Zambia, funding for work at the Kamazu University of Health Sciences in Malawi to help identify new variants of the virus, and enhanced support for the Pakistan Women and Girls Scholarships Scheme.

Updating the Scottish Parliament on these initiatives, International Development Minister Jenny Gilruth said:

“This commitment of £1.5 million shows that the Scottish Government is determined to continue playing its part in tackling this shared global challenge.

“COVID-19 is an unprecedented global crisis, leaving no country or people unaffected, and we must work together if we want to build back fairer and stronger.

“The majority of our International Development funded projects were able to continue through the pandemic, delivering vital work on the ground.

“And we were proud to provide additional help, such as the £250,000 in funding which led to the provision to our partner countries of £11.2 million worth of PPE to aid their COVID responses.”

Background

The Scottish Government helped support the supply of PPE to African partner countries and more detail can be found at this link Supplies to help fight COVID-19 in Africa - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Funding from the Scottish Government’s International Development Fund working with the humanitarian aid organisation UNICEF, went to support the response to the pandemic in Rwanda, Zambia and Malawi and more detail can be found at this link Aid for COVID-19 response in Africa - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

The £5 million investment by the Scottish Government has leveraged additional support worth around £13 million from NHS Scotland as well as the Wood Foundation; Pula Limited; Postcode Trust; and Delta Philanthropies, among others.