The Chinese community in Jamaica has answered the call for businesses to help alleviate the impact of the new coronavirus on Jamaicans.

“This is our home too and especially in this time of crisis in which people are losing their jobs and there is an increasing need for food and personal items, we have come together as the leaders of commerce, to support our Jamaican brothers and sisters,” says a liaison officer for the Chinese community.

The assistance is being provided to a wide cross-section of the society including the police, fire brigade, nurses at the Cornwall Regional Hospital and a number of schools. Care packages have already been supplied to several needy communities. The donation included food items, a large number of masks, hand sanitizers, tissues, gloves, hand towels among other things. Donations to schools were made to ensure the environment would be safe when schools re-open.

“We are hoping to continue this effort for as long as we can, to ease the difficulty our fellow Jamaicans will face as we fight the spread of the virus in Jamaica. There is a large consignment of goods on order from China which should be delivered by air courier within the next seven to 10 days, following which we will have another wave of assistance to the communities and agencies that need it,” the liaison officer said.

The Chinese community island-wide is meeting to expand assistance across the entire island where possible. It is collaborating with the Private Sector Organization of Jamaica (PSOJ) to ensure their efforts are coordinated into the national effort to fight the virus.