Monday, June 1, 2020

Nepal, ADB sign $250 million loan for Nepal’s Covid-19 response

The government of Nepal and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed on a loan agreement of a $250 million (equivalent to Rs 30 billion) for the Covid-19 Active Response and Expenditure Support (CARES) Programme to respond the impacts caused by Covid-19, today.
In presence of finance minister Dr Yuba Raj Khatiwada at the Finance Ministry, finance secretary Sishir Kumar Dhungana and ADB country director for Nepal Mukhtor Khamudkhanov signed the agreement. “We thank ADB for its support to Government of Nepal’s response to the Covid-19,” said Dhungana after the signing ceremony. “The programme will support the government’s National Relief Programme that has been announced to address the impact of the Corona pandemic,” he said, adding that it will also help to strengthen the Nepali public health system, provide social protection and create more employment.
“ADB remains fully committed to supporting Nepal in this challenging time and will work closely with the government in implementing this programme to support Nepal in fighting the pandemic and reduce impacts on people,” said ADB’s country director for Nepal Mukhtor Khamudkhanov.
This is a concessional loan and will be provided as a budgetary support. The programme will support the government of Nepal to strengthen its public health system by scaling up its testing laboratories, establishing quarantine facilities in all provinces, enabling of quality health service for prevention, control and cure of communicable disease, developing of health infrastructures with well-equipped hospitals, supplying of medicine and equipment; and providing service of qualified doctors and health workers.
The programme will also support the government to mitigate the adverse economic and social impacts of the pandemic, particularly on the poor and vulnerable.

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