Wednesday approved a UA 3 million ($4.16 million) grant to South Sudan
to support the emergency response to COVID-19 and strengthen the
country’s fragile health system.
The grant, from the Transitional Support Facility of the Bank Group’s
African Development Fund, will provide funding for the project to
enhance the capacity of South Sudan’s health facilities and to bolster
the country’s capacity to detect cases and curb the spread of the virus.
The world is facing an unprecedented challenge of containing the
COVID-19 pandemic and mitigating its impact on people’s lives,
livelihoods, and economies. South Sudan reported its first case of
COVID-19 on April 5, 2020, followed by increasing numbers of cases
daily. As of June 15, 2020, the country had reported 1,693 cases, 27
deaths, and 49 recoveries. The country remains at high risk. With
limited hospital bed capacity, gaps in health workers’ skills and
competencies, and a lack of functioning medical equipment, South Sudan
is ill-prepared to respond to the pandemic.
Currently, the small number of confirmed cases are being managed at the
country’s sole infectious disease facility, Dr. John Garang Infectious
Diseases Unit. However, the current capacity of the facility is only 24
beds. There are limited facilities and capacities for isolation and
management of COVID-19 cases at the state level as all samples from
suspected COVID-19 cases have to be brought to Juba by air for testing.
There are a limited number of isolation facilities outside the capital
and no Intensive Care Unit (ICU) capacity.
The bulk of activities under the Bank-funded project will focus on
improving facilities for the management of COVID-19 cases, including the
procurement of oxygen cylinders and vital signs equipment and the
recruitment and training of health workers. It will improve the capacity
for the detection of cases and the tracing of contacts.
African Development Bank Country Manager for South Sudan, Benedict Kanu
noted that while too early to estimate the full economic impact of the
coronavirus pandemic on South Sudan’s growth performance, given the
disruptions to businesses in South Sudan’s key trading partners
including China, Uganda, Kenya, and Italy, a notable economic impact of
COVID19 is likely to be felt in the medium to long term.
The project will be implemented by a team at the World Health
Organisation (WHO) in close coordination with South Sudan’s Ministry of
Health. It falls under the framework of the Bank’s COVID-19 Response
Facility (CRF) of up to $10 billion, which is the institution’s main
channel to provide assistance to African countries to cushion the
economic and health impacts of the crisis.