ISLAMABAD, APR 11 (DNA) –Pakistan has received first Asian Development Bank (ADB) funded emergency medical equipments and supplies to combat novel Coronavirus (Covid-19).

The first consignment of ADB-funded medical equipment and supplies to strengthen hospitals, diagnostic laboratories, isolation units, and other medical facilities has started arriving here, the ADB said in a message through its official twitter account.

Responding to Pakistan’s emergency assistance requests, ADB swiftly re-purposed $50 million from Pakistan’s National Disaster Risk Management Fund (NDRMF) to procure the urgently required supplies, it added.

The consignment was procured by National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and the equipment would be distributed to medical centers nationwide.

The ADB had announced to repurpose $50 million from Pakistan’s NDRMF to support the Government of Pakistan’s preventive and response efforts to fight the outbreak of COVID-19 in the country.

The funds, which form part of ADB’s series of support for Pakistan’s fight against COVID-19, will help to procure medical equipment and supplies to strengthen hospitals, diagnostic laboratories, isolation units, and other medical facilities in the country.

The funds included the reallocation of $30 million of previously approved but unutilized resources from ADB to NDRMF.

Following a request for emergency support from the Government of Pakistan, ADB swiftly processed a change in scope in its NDRMF project, enabling the repurposing and immediate use of these resources in the fight against COVID-19.

In addition, NDRMF has provided $20 million using capital gains from its endowment fund financed by ADB to support the government’s COVID-19 response.

These funds complement the financing approved on 2 April by the World Bank under its Pandemic Response Effectiveness Project. =DNA

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