Coronavirus funds to procure vehicles, upgrade blood banks

HEALTH   VIRUS

ENTEBBE - COVID-19 donation funds will be used to procure vehicles for use in the fight against the pandemic, which has claimed 71 lives in the country. Part of the fund, totalling over sh29b will also be used to upgrade two blood banks.

This was revealed by President Yoweri Museveni, while addressing journalists after a meeting with the COVID-19 national taskforce at State House in Entebbe, on Thursday.

President Museveni said as the country intensifies efforts in the fight against the pandemic, the COVID-19 donation funds will be used to procure vehicles for all districts. The vehicles will also serve some border points and work on the two blood banks of Arua and Soroti hospitals.

"We have agreed on how to use the cash from the COVID-19 donation fund. The fund now is over sh29b. They will buy 282 double cabin pick-ups, each district will get two vehicles. They will also work on some border points for receiving people returning from across the neighbouring countries and work on two blood banks of Arua and Soroti," the President said.

The President emphasized that this does not include the other vehicles which were given in kind, and which had already been given out, adding, that government will get the new vehicles directly from the manufacturers and will not deal with any middlemen.

The meeting was attended by Prime Minister Ruhakana Rugunda, Emmanuel Katongole, Dr Francis Omaswa, Dr Ian Clarke, Mary Karooro Okurut, Bishop Joshua Lwere, Robert Kabushenga, Kishor Jobanputra and Morris Ekwang

Uganda currently has 7,364 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and 70 deaths, with total COVID-19 samples tested to date at 469,003, after 146 new cases as of September 26.