World Bank hands over personal protective equipment worth US$1m to Mongolia

The PPE, purchased under the World Bank’s Pandemic Emergency Response Facility Grant, will be used by the public officers at high-risk screening points and health care providers in selected areas.

The World Bank Country Manager Andrei Mikhnev today handed over personal protective equipment (PPE) worth about US$1 million to the Ministry of Health. The PPE, purchased under the World Bank’s Pandemic Emergency Response Facility Grant, will be used by the public officers at high-risk screening points and health care providers in selected areas.

The PPE set includes:

Single-use gloves - 4,103,000 pieces

Single-use masks -218,000 pieces

Protective clothing  -36,000 pieces

N95 masks -28,500 pieces

Glasses – 6,000 pairs

Face shields -6,000 pieces.

“We are happy to see that this batch of personal protective equipment is delivered to Mongolia at the right moment – the moment when it is needed the most,” - said Andrei Mikhnev, World Bank Country Manager for Mongolia. “During the past year, the World Bank has provided financial and non-financial assistance to support different aspects of the work that Mongolia is doing to overcome the COVID-19 crisis. We look forward to continuing our cooperation with the Ministry of Health and other government organizations to ensure that they are fully equipped to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.”

“On behalf of the Government of Mongolia and on behalf of all the health sector workers in Mongolia, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the World Bank for this assistance,” – said M. Battuvshin, Deputy Minister of Health. “It is also important to note that the PPE provided to protect health sector workers and another staff working on the pandemic frontlines is particularly important and timely as the COVID-19 outbreak is spreading rapidly in Mongolia’s capital and provinces.”

In addition to the grant financing, the World Bank has been helping Mongolia meet emergency needs in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic and better prepare for future health crises through Mongolia COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health System Preparedness project, approved in April 2020. Under the project, diagnostic and respiratory equipment and intensive care equipment for reanimation units have been provided for provincial and district hospitals in 21 provinces and 9 districts. Most necessary medical and laboratory equipment to strengthen COVID-19 response has also been provided to Khan-Uul District Maternal and Children’s Hospital of Khan-Uul District, 3rd General Hospital, and Mongolia-Japan Teaching Hospital. This equipment has helped strengthen diagnostic and treatment capacity, patient care and laboratory of the hospitals.

In addition, the World Bank Board of Directors approved in February 20221 an additional financing of US$50.7 million to help provide affordable and equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines and to further strengthen preparedness and response activities.