(Cairo, Monday 7 July 2020) The world is facing an unprecedented threat from COVID-19. To respond to the crisis and the impacts of the pandemic, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Government of Canada signed an agreement worth CAD 500,000 (approx. USD 360,000) to support Egypt’s efforts to fight COVID-19, particularly the screening and testing capacity in Egypt.

The agreement will deliver testing and equipment which responds to Egypt’s needs as initiated by the Ministry of International Cooperation in its message to the international community earlier this year and identified by the Ministry of Health and Population.

The project was announced in a virtual meeting attended by H.E. Dr. Rania El Mashat, Minister of International Cooperation, H.E. Ambassador Jess Dutton, Ambassador of Canada to Egypt, Ambassador Lamia Mekhemar, Director of International Cooperation for Development, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Mohamed Hassany, Minister Assistant for Public Health, Ministry of Health and Population, Ms. Randa Aboul-Hosn, UNDP Resident Representative in Egypt, Dr. Omar Abdel Aziz Abou El Ata, World Health Organization Technical Officer – Surveillance, Preparedness and Response, and representatives from all partners.

“We are pleased to partner with the Government of Canada. Its generous grant will support Egypt’s health system at a critical moment and build on consistent cooperation with UNDP on many different fronts. This is the time to invest and strengthen health systems to serve the people of Egypt”, said Ms. Randa Aboul-Hosn, UNDP Resident Representative in Egypt. “We will continue to support the country in preparing, responding, and recovering from the Coronavirus”.

“Canada is pleased to have entered into a contribution arrangement with UNDP to provide $500,000 CAD for the purchase of CT scanners and diagnostic testing kit. This project is expected to increase the capacity of the Ministry of Health and Population for advanced screening and testing for COVID-19”, said H.E. Ambassador Jess Dutton, Ambassador of Canada to Egypt. “Canada is proud to support Egypt`s response to COVID-19, and all of our projects are currently supporting either a health response or a socio-economic response to the coronavirus pandemic.”

The rapidly spreading nature of the virus and the pressure it causes on the health systems prompt the need to continue implementing the most effective measures to control the virus transmission.

For media inquiries, please contact:

UNDP: Fatma Elzahraa Yassin, UNDP Communications Analyst, fatma.yassin@undp.org       

The Embassy of Canada in Egypt: Press and Public Affairs Unit, CAIROGR@international.gc.ca

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