Japan grants PKR 1.54bn to Pakistan to help tackle COVID-19

Japan will be providing a sum of PKR 1.54 billion as a grant to Pakistan to help the country take measures to mitigate the impact of COVID-19.

According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Economic Affairs, a grant aid agreement has been penned by Japan and Pakistan under which Japan will provide a grant of PKR 1.54 billion to Pakistan.

The grant will facilitate the purchase of medical equipment, especially ventilators and oxygen cylinders.

Furthermore, according to Secretary Economic Affairs Noor Ahmed, Japan has also offered assistance in improving facilities at Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences (PIMS) and Hyderabad hospitals.

The grant agreement signing ceremony was held at the Ministry of Economic Affairs and was attended by the Japanese Ambassador and Secretary of Economic Affairs.

The Japanese Ambassador said that Pakistan has adopted the best strategy to deal with Coronavirus pandemic. He hoped that Pakistan would deal with the second wave of COVID-19 in a better way and Japan would continue its cooperation in Pakistan’s socio-economic development.

The grant agreement arrives at a point when Pakistan is well and truly experiencing the second wave of the deadly coronavirus. In the last 24 hours, a further 73 people have died, taking the country’s overall death toll to 8,905. Currently, there are more than 48,000 active cases in the country, with a total of 1,614 recoveries.