After coronavirus testing kits, Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Foundation have sent 300,000 masks to Bangladesh.
Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport’s (HSIA) Director Group Captain AHM Touhid-ul Ahsan said a flight from China, carrying the masks, arrived on Sunday afternoon.
Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Health Emergency Operation Centre and Control Room officials went to the Dhaka airport to receive the medical equipment.
Meanwhile, Yan Hualong, deputy chief of mission at Chinese Embassy in Dhaka, among others, was present at the airport to hand over the masks to Bangladesh government officials.
The airport’s medical officer Dr Shahriar Sajjad said, the flight contained 2,70,000 surgical masks and 30,000 N95 masks, which will be distributed on demand in hospitals across Bangladesh along with the testing kits.
Some 30,000 more coronavirus testing kits arrived from China as a donation to Bangladesh by Jack Ma Foundation and Alibaba Foundation on Friday.
On March 21, Jack Ma, co-founder and former executive chairman of Alibaba Group, announced to help Bangladesh and some other Asian nations to contain the spread of coronavirus.
Ma promised to donate emergency supplies, including masks, testing kits, protective suits, plus ventilators and thermometers.
Bangladesh received the second batch of medical logistics, including 10,000 testing kits, 10,000 personal protective equipment (PPE) and 1,000 infrared thermometers from China on Thursday afternoon.
Win Covid-19 battle
Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Li Jiming said Bangladesh, with the support from China and other countries, will be able to win the Covid-19 battle, mentioning that China's support to Bangladesh on all fronts will continue.
"Be confident, Bangladesh. You will win," said the Ambassador assuring that if China can win, Bangladesh can also win this battle.
Local companies are also producing PPE and masks to address the needs.
Bangladesh announced its first coronavirus cases on March 8. It has so far confirmed 48 cases and five deaths.
The Covid-19 coronavirus, first reported in China in December last year, is affecting 199 countries and territories around the world and two international conveyances.
It has infected more than 668,300 people globally and killed 31,000 of them so far -- a mortality rate of 18%, according to Worldometer. However, 143,107 of the patients have recovered while 494,216 are undergoing treatment. Of them, 25,379 patients are in critical condition.
