KATHMANDU, August 31: The Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Nepal, Park Chong-suk handed over 94 units of oxygen concentrators to Umesh Shrestha, Minister of State for Health and Population on Tuesday. Similarly, KOICA-KAAN donated three units of oxygen concentrators to Methinkot Hospital on the same day. 

The Republic of Korea has prepared plans to provide oxygen concentrators worth $604,500 to Nepal via KOICA (total 378 Units of oxygen concentrators). This handover was carried out to support Nepal’s COVID-19 responses through KOICA’s development projects in Nepal along with the donation from KOICA Alumni Association of Nepal (KAAN). The remaining 281 units of oxygen concentrators will be handed over to Nepal by the end of September 2021.

KOICA decided to support these oxygen concentrators based on the request of the Ministry of Health and Population due to acute shortage of medical oxygen supply during the second wave of COVID-19 in Nepal. It is a nine liters per minute capacity high flow oxygen concentrator manufactured in the USA.

Out of these 378 oxygen concentrators KOICA, plans to provide 280 units to MoHP, three units to Methinkot Hospital through KAAN, 15 units to Nepal Korea Friendship Municipality Hospital, 10 units to Trishuli Hospital, 25 units to Kathmandu University, 25 units to Dhulikhel Hospital, 15 units to Tikapur Hospital and 5 units to Mugu Hospital.

At the handover ceremony, the ambassador said that Korea has always considered Nepal as one of its close friends and has always extended its supportive hands to Nepal. He added that Korea will continue its support to various sectors for Nepal’s development. He expressed his hope that each of these equipment will be dispatched to the hospitals where they are most needed and effectively utilized.

At the event, Minister of State Shrestha thanked the Ambassador and the Government of Republic of Korea for such meaningful support. He stressed that the support from the Republic of Korea shall be distributed very carefully to hospitals with a shortage of medical oxygen supply. He also expressed hope that such support will continue in the future as well.

South Korea, through KOICA, has been supporting Nepal since the initial outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. KOICA has already supported with medical essentials worth $726,000 for Nepal’s COVID-19 response since 2020, which includes more than 57,000 complete sets of RT PCR test kits and COVID-19 protection materials such as PPE, mask, sanitizer, surgical gloves, thermometers to various hospitals in need of support. 

 
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