President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has expressed gratitude to the U.S government for its decision to include the Maldives in the new global vaccine sharing programme.
In a tweet, President Solih thanked U.S President Joe Biden and the American people on behalf of all Maldivians for including the Maldives as one of the first beneficiaries of the vaccine sharing programme. He added donated vaccine doses from the U.S are highly welcome in the fight against COVID-19.
Meanwhile, Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdulla Shahid also expressed gratitude to the U.S government for its decision to include the Maldives among the first countries to receive COVID-19 vaccines from the U.S. He noted this is testament to the trusted and close partnership between the two countries. He thanked the U.S government for this essential aid at such a critical juncture.
Meanwhile, the U.S government has also airlifted emergency medical supplies to the Maldives to help stop the spread of COVID-19, and continue to meet the urgent health needs across the country. In a press release, U.S Agency for International Development (USAID) stated the emergency assistance delivery to the Maldives includes 600 pulse oximetres and 292,000 vital pieces of personal protective equipment (PPE) to support frontline healthcare workers and people most affected by the current outbreak.
Prior to the shipment, USAID has provided USD 9.1 million to assist the COVID-19 response and recovery in the Maldives, including a donation of 60 ventilators to care for critically ill patients, which has provided life-saving treatments, strengthened clinical care, and mobilised critical supplies to bolster the response and help the country recover from the outbreak.