US declares additional $3 million grant to support India’s COVID-19 efforts

New Delhi, April 30: The United States Agency for International Development on Thursday announced a grant of an additional USD 3 million to India to assist the country in the battle against the coronavirus. Previously $2.9 million was sanctioned earlier this month.

 

 

The USAID is providing these funds to the Partnerships for Affordable Healthcare Access and Longevity (PAHAL) project, an innovative financing platform of IPE Global, USAID said in a statement today.

 

US Ambassador to India Kenneth Juster said the additional funding will further support India's response to COVID-19. He stated: “This additional funding to support India in its continuing efforts to combat COVID-19 is yet another example of the strong and enduring partnership between the United States and India.”

 

 

To date, the USAID has provided USD 5.9 million in grants to help India in its battle against the coronavirus pandemic. The new aid of USD 3 million will help the country in mitigating the spread of the deadly contagion, provide care for the affected, disseminate essential public health messages to communities, and strengthen case finding and surveillance.

 

Through the PAHAL project, USAID will support the National Health Authority to establish a financing facility that can mobilize resources from the private sector to assist over 20,000 health facilities enrolled under Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY), India’s health insurance scheme for 500 million poor and vulnerable people.