Frontline City of Johannesburg workers and communities in Johannesburg stand to benefit from R1.5 million donation of personal protective equipment (PPE) by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in South Africa to the municipality.
This week’s donation includes 20 000 surgical masks, 2 000 face shields, 10 000 hair nets, 1 000 surgical goggles, 5 000 gloves, 5 000 disposable aprons, 200 forehead thermometers, 5 000 cloth masks, 2 000 hand sanitisers and 1 000 bacterial soaps.
During the handover ceremony at the Joburg Theatre on Tuesday, 2 June 2020, the Executive Mayor Cllr Geoffrey Makhubo said the PPE will go a long way in helping the City to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
“There are communities that can’t even afford even a simple mask, they can’t afford sanitiser and it’s through donations like this that we’ll be able to reach out to those communities in informal settlements that really need these,” said Cllr Makhubo.
A total of 5 000 cloth masks will be distributed to communities identified by the City, while the rest of the PPE will be used by the City’s frontline employees.
The Resident Representative of UNDP South Africa, Dr Ayodele Odusola, said the effort displayed by the City in combating the pandemic has inspired the UNDP and other members of the UN working in South Africa to establish this partnership with the City.
“Johannesburg is the epicentre of the epidemic in Gauteng and South Africa is the epicentre of the epidemic in Africa. To address this challenge, the City and the country cannot do it alone and partnerships with external stakeholders will be key in fighting this epidemic. During our discussions with City officials, they have highlighted the dire need for PPE, both for healthcare workers and communities,” said Dr Odusola.
The donation is also part of a broader partnership that the UNDP and the City intend to establish within the framework of the new strategic programme covering the 2020-2025 period.
