India, UN, development partners helping Papua New Guinea in COVID-19 fight

India and the US along with the United Nations and development partners such as the World Bank worked together to fund essential equipment to fight COVID-19 disease in Papua New Guinea where there are seven confirmed cases of the virus. Resident Coordinator in Papua New Guinea Gianluca Rampolla has mobilized the team to assist with the national health preparedness and response plan. The UN team is also helping the Government in areas including water and sanitation, social protection, education, food security, supply and logistics, as well as information management and risk communication, Spokesman for the Secretary-General Stéphane Dujarric said on Wednesday.

"The UN on the ground quickly brought development partners, such as the World Bank and the European Union, together with donor Governments like Australia, India, Japan, New Zealand and the US, as well as local authorities, to all work together to fund essential equipment to fight the disease," he said. A million sets of personal protective equipment, as well as ventilators, ambulances and tents, are being procured. The UN team is also helping to set up isolation and quarantine wards and pre-triage facilities for the whole of Papua New Guinea, Dujarric said.

He said that the UN is also closely coordinating with the Government, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank to carry out a socioeconomic impact assessment to identify priority needs to save livelihoods and lift the economy.