Google announces USD 2.5M grant to scale up COVID-19 response in Southeast Asia

In addition, Google will provide a further USD5 million in ad grants so that local government agencies and organizations like UNICEF can run public information campaigns.

Google, via its philanthropic arm Google.org, has announced a USD 2.5 million grant to help UNICEF and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), as well as partners on the ground, scale up the COVID-19 response in Southeast Asian countries including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines and Pakistan.

The new funds are part of Google's broader contribution to the response to COVID across Asia-Pacific and will provide critical, life-saving support to the people who need it most.

In addition, Google will provide a further USD5 million in ad grants so that local government agencies and organizations like UNICEF can run public information campaigns.

"In many parts of Southeast Asia and beyond, the impact of COVID-19 remains severe. More than 18 months after the virus first began spreading, high caseloads and new variants are putting pressure on health systems. It's a difficult time for people across the region, and heartbreaking for those who've lost loved ones," Google wrote in a blog post on Thursday.

Google has also partnered with health authorities to share the latest health information and supporting news sources people can trust. The search giant, via a separate Google.org grant, is helping ASEAN, the Asia Foundation and local nonprofits close digital divides in marginalized communities.

In Southeast Asia, Googlers have donated USD 80,000 and counting for local nonprofits' COVID response efforts in Indonesia and Vietnam.