ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirattes (CMC ) – The United Arab Emirates (UAE) yesterday sent a relief plane with medical supplies, including 500,000 coronavirus test kits, to several countries in the region including Jamaica, Dominica, Barbados, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Grenada, Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago.

In a statement, the UAE’s Ambassador to Cuba and Non-Resident Ambassador to the Dominican Republic, Jamaica, St Kitts-Nevis, Badar Almatrooshi said approximately 12,500 medical professionals will benefit from the assistance provided.

“The UAE is a strong supporter of Caribbean governments’ efforts to achieve their national priorities and sustainable development goals, particularly in ensuring access to modern, sustainable, and affordable energy services. The UAE extends as well its support to these governments in taking urgent action to combat climate change, achieve gender equality, and empower women and girls,” the ambassador said in a statement.

“The dispatch of medical aid aircraft to the Caribbean islands reflects the UAE’s ongoing efforts to support their fight against the current pandemic by providing the necessary medical supplies to enhance the capacity of medical workers and provide them with appropriate protection,” he said.

Ibrahim Mohamed Juma Al Mansouri, UAE ambassador to Panama and non-resident ambassador to the Commonwealth of The Bahamas and Barbados, said: “The UAE is honoured to extend assistance to Caribbean nations, where COVID-19 has presented challenges that the region has faced with courage and determination. This aid will further strengthen Caribbean nations’ ability to fight the pandemic in service of their communities.”

Lana Nusseibeh, permanent representative of the UAE to the United Nations in New York and non-resident ambassador to Grenada said, “International cooperation is essential to contain the pandemic and drive economic recovery. We agree with the World Health Organization’s assessment that no one is safe until everyone is safe. The UAE is committed to working with the international community and Caribbean countries to ensure that lives and health are preserved and that tourism, trade, and other economic activity can resume safely.”

To date, the UAE has responded to the COVID-19 crisis by providing more than 1,132 metric tons of aid to 89 countries, supporting more than one million medical professionals in the process.

The UAE has also provided aircraft to the UN World Food Programme, which runs logistics for the UN response to COVID-19, and US$10 million in testing kits to the World Health Organization.

The UAE is also host to the UN’s largest supply and logistics hub, housed in Dubai’s International Humanitarian City.