June 19:  Nepal received 982 units of 10-liter oxygen concentrators, financed by the World Bank today.

Issuing a statement on Saturday, the World Bank said that the concentrators are part of a long-term solution for augmenting Nepal’s capacities to supply therapeutic oxygen to public health facilities towards a stronger response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I am very pleased that we have been able to quickly bring in the oxygen concentrators, which will be dispatched to health facilities of greatest need across all seven provinces of the country,” the statement quoted Sher Bahadur Tamang, Minister of Health and Population, as saying. “The government is working hard to strengthen availability of medical oxygen in all the public health facilities of Nepal, such that every Nepali citizen requiring oxygen is able to access it.”

According to the statement, the oxygen concentrators were procured through United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) under the World Bank-financed COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health Systems Preparedness Project, which has also financed seven oxygen generation plants, one for each province in Nepal. 

These plants will be brought in, installed and operationalized by UNOPS in a phased manner in seven provincial hospitals, in the next 6-15 weeks, said the statement.

 “The World Bank has made available $104 million to support Nepal’s immediate health response to the pandemic, including the procurement of life-saving COVID-19 vaccines, and strengthening the country’s health systems and preparedness,” the statement quoted Faris Hadad-Zervos, World Bank Country Director for Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, as saying. “We are committed to support Nepal and Nepalis during this crisis, and by joining forces with the government and development partners, we have been able to have more impact.”