The United States governments has provided Zambia with US$1.87 million (about US$1.9 million) as immediate health assistance funding which will augment Government interventions against the COVID 19 pandemic.
This funding towards Zambias COVID -19 response will aid scale up programs and projects in risk communication, water and sanitation, infection prevention and control and public health messaging.
In a statement made available to the Zambian Business Times – ZBT by First Secretary – Press and Public Relations for Zambias mission to the US, Eric Mwanza on April 2, 2020, the assistance from the US government is an addition to nearly US$3.9 billion in U.S. health assistance.
The US State Department says in a news release that the new funds are a demonstration of the U.S. Government’s leading global humanitarian and health assistance response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are mobilizing all necessary resources to respond rapidly, both at home and abroad. As part of this comprehensive and generous U.S. response, the State Department and USAID are providing an initial investment of nearly $274 million in emergency health and humanitarian assistance to help countries in need, on top of the funding we already provide to multilateral organizations such as the World Health Organization and UNICEF,” the State Department said in a statement.
Meanwhile, health minister Chitalu Chilufya has confirmed at a media briefing that Zambia has recorded a total 39 cases of COVID-19 with one death recorded as of April 2, 2020. The continued increase in the number of cases is raising fear that the disease is not being contained.
Neighboring countries are also reporting more confirmed COVID 19 cases raising fears that land border crossing may also join as a major risk of entry point for new COVID 19 infections. So far, there has been no direct comment from the Zambia Army on enhanced measures to prevent land and water border crossing especially through undesignated border points.
