BAKU, Azerbaijan, Apr. 14
By Ilkin Seyfaddini – Trend:
The government of Uzbekistan plans to raise $100 million for emergency measures against the coronavirus, Trend reports citing the Ministry of Finance of Uzbekistan.
The project aims to strengthen the national health system and provide financial support to the population and households.
The Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Health of Uzbekistan jointly with the World Bank presented the project on emergency response to COVID-19 pandemic in the country.
The project implementation includes three components - strengthening the national health care system, financial support for individuals and households, and support for administrative and human resources necessary for project implementation.
Amount of $29.5 million will be allocated for strengthening the national healthcare system.
Government plans to purchase essential equipment, consumables, communication and personal protective equipment for rapid response teams at the regional and district levels. Fifteen laboratories will be equipped with test systems for diagnosing coronavirus.
Special medical equipment will be purchased for treatment of patients in severe and critical condition, including IVL machines, blood gas analyzers, portable X-ray units, etc.
Financial support for individuals and households will amount to $69.5 million. Within this framework, it is planned to expand the system of temporary cash benefits for needy families, increasing the coverage of social assistance to the population beyond 60,000 families (the level set by the government before the COVID-19 outbreak).
In addition, government plans to provide wage subsidies for workers which was sent out on unpaid vacation.
Amount of $1 million will be allocated to support the administrative and human resources needed to implement the project. This component includes funding for staff and consultants related to project management, procurement, technical assistance and others.
The World Bank is expected to provide $30 million, which will be used to purchase medical equipment, personal protective equipment and medicines. The remaining amount will be provided by other partners.
A document with final project activities will be published after project approval.
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