World Bank Helps Bhutan’s COVID-19 Response with $5 Million Emergency Aid Package
Format
The Bank fast-tracked a $5 million project to help Bhutan prevent, detect, and respond to COVID-19. The project strengthened preparedness, supported contact tracing and early warning systems and funded the procurement of medical and testing supplies. All Bhutan’s hospitals and 78 primary health centers received test kits and all 20 district health authorities were provided with personal protective equipment (PPE) and other supplies.
Challenge
The Bank responded promptly to the COVID-19 pandemic, which spread across the world and quickly reached the small landlocked country of Bhutan in the eastern Himalayas. Given the uncertainty of health supplies amid the global crisis and the risk that the Buddhist kingdom’s healthcare facilities could be overstretched, the Bank worked quickly with government counterparts to prepare a $5 million assistance project. The aim was to ensure there were su