11 April 2022 (Koror, Palau) – A cargo van to transfer required medical and non-medical goods and equipment was officially handed over to the Ministry of Health in the Republic of Palau on Monday 11 April, supplied under the UN Development Programme (UNDP)’s COVID-19 Response Support in the Pacific project. The ceremony was held at the Ministry of Health conference room at the Belau National Hospital.
The Project has been implementing globally since May 2020 where UNDP Pacific Office is implementing support to Pacific Island countries with a total of US$1,810,286. Funded by the Government of Japan, the project has also supplied non-medical equipment of health sector such as personal protective equipment (PPE) and waste disposal carts for safer operation of COVID-19 response.
His Excellency Mr. KARASAWA Akira, Ambassador of Japan to Palau said, “Even if we have all the necessary supplies, unless they are delivered promptly, they are meaningless and we will not be able to overcome this pandemic. In this sense, I believe that this provision is timely when Palau is about to receive many guests, including dignitaries from around the world for Our Ocean Conference”.
In his remarks at the handover ceremony, UNDP Pacific Office in Fiji Resident Representative Mr. Levan Bouadze expressed his appreciation to the Government of Japan for their generous support, which enables UNDP to meet the needs requested by the Government of Palau to strengthen the health system management and deal with the uncertainty surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.
The COVID-19 Response Support project provided supports to the Pacific countries in the following three priorities:
- Health systems strengthening to respond to COVID-19
- Inclusive and multi-sectoral crisis management and responses; and
- Addressing the socio-economic impact of COVID-19
For more information, please contact:
Paula Cirikiyasawa, Country Project Coordinator, EDCR Project Office in the Republic of Palau, Tel: +(691) 320 4456, Email: paula.cirikiyasawa@undp.org
UNDP partners with people at all levels of society to help build nations that can withstand crisis, and drive and sustain the kind of growth that improves the quality of life for everyone. The UNDP Pacific Office in Fiji provides country and regional support to 15 countries in the Pacific, as part of the 177-country office UNDP network, and offers global perspective and local insight to help empower lives and build resilient nations. www.pacific.undp.org