The medical equipment necessary for testing and treatment of suspected COVID-19 patients will arrive by Sunday.
A minister confided with Setopati that the government has already signed agreement with vendors to bring medical equipment. "Vendors are already preparing to bring equipment from China. They have said they will bring the materials chartering planes from China," the minister said. "We are ready to even send plane if they demand. The medical equipment will arrive by Saturday as far as possible or Sunday at the latest."
The minister revealed that the vendors will gather the materials at the Chinese city of Guangzhou and fly them to Nepal from there.
The materials promised by Alibaba founder Jack Ma will also arrive by Saturday. But sources at the Department of Health say the exact list of what Ma will send has yet to be finalized.
Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Ishwore Pokharel speaking with Setopati earlier had also assured that all the necessary materials will arrive by Saturday even if flights have to be chartered.
The high-level coordination committee to fight coronavirus pandemic headed by Pokharel has already instructed the Civil Aviation Ministry to make arrangements for chartered flights.
Nepal has also asked for personal protective equipment (PPE), PCR (polymerase chain reaction) test kits, viral transport medium (VTM) necessary to carry the samples, N95 masks, infra-red thermometers, portable PCRs and their reagents, portable ventilators with monitor, mobile ambulances with lab, ambulances, arterial blood gas (ABG) machines, oxygen plants, intubating sets, autoclave machines to sterilize medical equipment, continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT) machines, thermometers and surgical gloves from the Chinese government.
