FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 16, 2020
THE UNITED STATES PROVIDES ADDITIONAL COVID- 19 FUNDING TO UNICEF BELARUS
June 16, 2020 – The United States, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), has provided to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) an additional $450,000 to support Belarus’ response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This funding was originally announced on May 19, 2020.
Since April 2020, USAID’s partnership with UNICEF has resulted in the following:
- 9 educational videos on using personal protective equipment and improving assistance to patients distributed to all hospitals with COVID-19 infected patients;
- Webinars on the provision of emergency psychological support, which have reached over 700 specialists that work with patients infected with COVID-19; ongoing video consultations have supported 54 professionals;
- The delivery of 13,276 liters of sanitizer, 4,685 liters of antibacterial soap, and 2,235 sanitizer dispensers to the Republican Transfusiology Center, the Emergency Response Center, orphanages, institutions for children with disabilities, and border checkpoints throughout Belarus.
The additional USAID funding will continue to facilitate risk communication and community engagement activities and provide critical hygiene and medical supplies for health facilities. USAID’s support will mitigate the secondary effects of the pandemic by preparing medical and technical experts for their response work, provide social and mental health support to front-line workers, and develop public information campaigns to inform the public on how to stay safe and healthy.
In total, USAID has committed $1.7 million to support the response to the pandemic in Belarus. For more information on USAID’s COVID-19 response in Belarus please review the THE U.S. GOVERNMENT’S COVID-19 RESPONSE IN BELARUS Fact Sheet
For details on specific in-country response activities, please contact USAID at press@usaid.gov.
