Ebola: Berne allocates CHF 3 million against the epidemic
Keystone-SDA
The Swiss government is allocating CHF3 million ($3.8 million) to fight the Ebola epidemic that is spreading in the Democratic Republic of Congo and neighbouring countries.
The sum, which the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) takes from its emergency aid funds, is divided in various ways. More than CHF2 million will go to the World Health Organisation (WHO) to coordinate the deployment of emergency medical teams and to provide support in terms of expertise and laboratories, the foreign ministry said in a note today.
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Half a million francs will support a programme for maternal and child health in South and North Kivu. The remainder, about CHF400,000, will go to an ongoing project for the prevention and control of infectious diseases in the provinces of Ituri and North Kivu.
Swiss Solidarity, the charitable arm of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (Swissinfo’s parent company) has also pledged CHF1.2 million from its humanitarian relief fund to help contain the virus in the Democratic Republic of Congo and surrounding regions.
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With these funds, Swiss Solidarity is supporting, among other things, isolation and treatment centers, testing and contact tracing, as well as the distribution of hygiene kits and protective equipment. Prevention work in affected communities and safe burials are also being funded, according to a statement released on Wednesday.
Adapted from Italian by AI/ac
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