This archive report was first published on 20 May 2020.
On May 20, 2020, the UK announced its commitment to invest up to 2.6 billion KES in the African Union's new 'Africa anti-COVID 19 Fund' to tackle the coronavirus pandemic and save lives in Africa and worldwide.
The fund, announced by Cyril Ramaphosa, Chairperson of the African Union (AU) and President of the Republic of South Africa, will support African leaders and technical experts to slow the spread of coronavirus and save lives in Africa and worldwide.
The UK's contribution will help tackle the pandemic by recruiting African health experts and deploying them where they are needed most, strengthening global tracking of the pandemic, combatting potentially harmful misinformation, providing specialist coronavirus training for health workers, and making information about the virus more accessible to the public.
International Development Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan said, 'As the UK faces its biggest peacetime challenge in tackling coronavirus, it's never been more important to work with our partners in Africa to fight disease.'
British High Commissioner to Kenya Jane Marriott added, 'The UK stands with Kenya as we fight this threat together. The African Union, and their public health agency Africa CDC, are at the forefront of the continental response, providing strong African-led leadership and technical advice from which we all stand to benefit.'
The UK's contribution to the Africa anti-COVID 19 fund will prevent the spread of the virus by working in partnership with the AU to help fight the virus, strengthen healthcare systems, and save lives in the AU's 55 member states.
Today's announcement brings the total UK aid contribution to fighting coronavirus to up to 99 billion KES ($935.6 million).
