Published in: The Daily Star
Date: 09 August, 2021

The United States has announced an additional $11.4 million in urgent Covid-19 assistance for Bangladesh.

This assistance will help Bangladesh battle the current wave of Covid-19 by providing life-saving medical and oxygen supplies, and accelerate national efforts to roll out effective vaccination.

“This additional donation through the historic American Rescue Plan is part of our ongoing support to help Bangladesh fight Covid-19,” said US Ambassador to Bangladesh Earl R Miller in a statement today.

He said the US is the largest donor of assistance to Bangladesh’s Covid-19 response. America has been Bangladesh’s closest partner for the past five decades, working to improve public health, he added.

“At this particularly challenging moment in the battle against the pandemic, our partnership is more important than ever,” said Ambassador Miller.

With this new funding, the US government has provided a total of over $96 million to support Bangladesh’s response to Covid-19 since the beginning of the pandemic and continues to work closely with the government and other partners to protect the health of Bangladeshis.

Total US Covid-19 assistance includes the donation of 5.5 million doses of the Moderna vaccine and capacity-building support towards the rollout of the national vaccination campaign.

The US has committed $2 billion to support the worldwide COVAX vaccination effort, with a pledge of an additional $2 billion, making the United States the world’s largest donor for equitable global vaccine access.

Through USAID, the US Department of Defense, the US Department of State, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States has also provided medical supplies, ventilators, oxygen equipment, pulse oximeters, and millions of pieces of personal protective equipment (PPE) for frontline workers across Bangladesh.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net/health/disease/coronavirus/news/us-announces-additional-114-million-urgent-covid-assistance-bangladesh-2148231