A stock of essential medical equipment including oxygen cylinders was presented to the Minister of Health Pavithra Wanniarachchi yesterday (19) under the auspices of UNICEF with the financial assistance of the Government of Australia to strengthen the Covid control programme in the country.
Emma Brigham, UNICEF Resident Representative in Sri Lanka, donated the equipment to the Minister of Health, Pavithra Wanniarachchi at the UNICEF Headquarters in Colombo. Hanaa Singer-Hamdy, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations, was also present.
291 oxygen cylinders, 342 oxygen regulators, 2,490 oxygen masks and 20 fire extinguishers worth Rs. 952 million were donated at the event.
These equipment are to be provided to the hospitals and treatment centers in the Western Province.
Pavithra Wanniarachchi, Minister of Health said that the donation would help strengthen the Covid-19 treatment services in Sri Lanka and thanked the Government of Australia for their donation. She also expressed her gratitude to UNICEF for coordinating the donation to Sri Lanka.
Dr. Lakshmi Somatunga, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Health, Dr. Dhammika Jayalath, Director, Health Services, Western Province and a delegation representing UNICEF were also present on the occasion.