EU Contributes to Pandemic Frontline

Apr 10 , 2021

The European Union (EU) has donated COVID-19 medical supplies meant to help curb the virus's spread in vulnerable border areas such as Metemma, Kumruk, and Moyale. The items handed over to the Ethiopian Public Health Institute (EPHI) include half a million surgical masks, 100,000 surgical caps, over 25,000 COVID-19 test kits, and two ambulances. An advanced ambulance, a mobile laboratory, and half a million surgical gloves will be arriving in subsequent months, according to EU officials. The donation is part of the EU’s 60-million-euro package to support IGAD member states in tackling the health and socio-economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. A little over a year since the first case of COVID-19 was discovered in Ethiopia, no less than 3,000 people have lost their lives to the virus, while over 200,000 people have contracted the virus. The spread of the virus has shown a sudden surge since January this year, alarming health authorities and the public.