This article outlines the government of Kuwait’s response to the health crisis caused by the COVID 19 pandemic and the course of action that it has undertaken to protect the public health of its citizens and residents. The policy report includes an early cost/benefit...

Kuwait to offer free COVID 19 vaccines to expats
In an effort to equitably provide vaccines in the first round of COVID 19 vaccinations, the Kuwaiti government has extended the provision of free vaccines to expatriates. Although Kuwaiti citizens will be given priority once the COVID-19 vaccines arrive in Kuwait and...

Kuwait’s Health Ministry battles shrinking budget during coronavirus pandemic
The Kuwait government cut the Ministry of Health’s budget by about 135 million Kuwaiti dinars KD (447 million USD) this year on account of the reduced fiscal space caused by COVID 19. This is a major challenge for the Ministry of Health, especially in light of the...

Review of financing and monetary response measures in light of COVID-19 in Kyrgyzstan
Adequate health financing is essential to manage the burden on the health system. Policy responses on payment for health services by Kyrgyzstan during COVID-19 were reviewed by the European Observatory for Health Systems and Policies. The review of COVID-19 response...

The Gambia receives US$ 30 million grant to strengthen health care delivery in the face of COVID-19
The Gambia received a $30 million grant from the international development association (IDA) to improve the quality and utilization of essential health services amidst COVID-19. The essential health services strengthening project will provide...

Rwanda receives $109.4 million to support war on COVID-19
Rwanda received $109.4 million funding to support war against COVID-19 in April, 2020. The money was approved on thursday, April 2, 2020 and was disbursed through the rapid credit facility (RCF). The funds are meant to support Rwanda’s efforts in...
South Sudan receives its first consignment of Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines
South Sudan received the first consignment of 152,950 doses of the Johnson & Johnson ‘Janssen’ COVID-19 vaccines on 14th September, 2021. These single dose Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines are the third batch of vaccine shipments to South Sudan through the...
Sudan receives over 350,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines
On 11 September, 2021 Sudan received a shipment of 357,000 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines from Germany. This marks the fourth shipment of COVID-19 vaccine doses Sudan has received since March 2021. Previously, the country received over one million doses...
Sierra Leone gets another 96,000 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine
Sierra Leone got another consignment of 96,000 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine last week through COVAX scheme. Earlier this year, Sierra Leone’s ministry of health received 260,000 doses of COVID-19 vaccines from china and western donor countries through the...

Funding boost supports ongoing Māori COVID-19 response in New Zealand
New Zealand government raised a budget of $38 million to support Māori Health providers, aiming to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic and boost the vaccination rates of the Māori population. Out of the total budget, $17 million will be funded to support the providers...

COVID-19 response gets funding boost in Canberra, Australia
In Canberra, Australia, the ACT government allocates approximately $90 million of the 2021-22 ACT budget to support public health response during the COVID-19 pandemic and foster the vaccine rollout. In addition, another $22.5 million will be funded for the vaccine...

Sierra Leone gets additional US$1 million for urgent COVID-19 assistance
The government of Sierra Leone gets additional US$1 million for urgent COVID-19 response. The funds will support the government in implementing its national vaccine deployment plan and ensuring that all vaccines made available to the country through the COVAX...

Healthcare benefits cover more COVID 19 care in Thailand
In Thailand, 198.89 billion baht has been approved for National Health Security Fund to operate the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) in the 2022 fiscal year, excluding 140.55 billion baht earmarked separately for staff’s payroll. The 2022 budget will be rearranged to...

Nigeria gets a US$400 million loan for COVID-19 vaccines
On 2 October, 2021, the government of Nigeria received approval from the World Bank for $400m credit in additional financing from the International Development Association (IDA) to provide upfront financing for safe and effective COVID-19 vaccine acquisition and...

Budget of social protection assistance program reaches Rp 117.3 trillion in Indonesia
In Indonesia, the National Economic Recovery (PEN) program for social protection cluster spent Rp117.3 trillion or 62.9 percent of the budget ceiling as of October 1, 2021. In response to the COVID pandemic, Rp104.1 trillion has been allocated for the public health...