PORT AU PRINCE, Haiti (CMC) — The Government of Haiti has received funds amounting to US$16.1 million from the United States, to help the country respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The funds from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) will support the Haitian Government’s national COVID-19 response plan, led by the Ministry of Public Health, the Department of Civil Protection of the Ministry of the Interior, the Haitian intensive care hospital network, and local and international organisations.
“The American people have a long history of helping their neighbours, both at home and abroad. The United States provides aid because we believe it’s the right thing to do; we also provide assistance as a matter of pragmatism. If we can help countries contain outbreaks, we’ll save lives abroad and at home in the United States,” said US Ambassador to Haiti Michèle Sison.
Through USAID and the Centers for Disease Control, the United States will support, among other things, the purchase and distribution of hand-washing kits to reach approximately 400,000 Haitians; launch a national hand-washing campaign in health facilities, religious centres, marketplaces, and public spaces in French and Creole; and amplify the Government’s messaging through national and local radio, sound trucks, megaphone announcements and visual materials to specifically address any stigma, discrimination, misinformation, and myths.
To date, the number of active cases in Haiti now stands at 61.
There have been six deaths.