In partnership with the Governments of Australia and New Zealand, the World Health Organization provided additional laboratory supplies to Papua New Guinea to scale up testing for COVID-19.
The supplies composed of 1,740 GeneXpert cartridges and 25,000 Universal Transport Medium (UTM) were handed over to Dr Paison Dakulala, Acting Secretary of the National Department of Health and Deputy Controller of the National Control Center (NCC) on 10 July 2020. To date, Papua New Guinea has received a more than 3,100 GeneXpert cartridges.
“Since the start of our response, to where we are now, the contributions of our partners have been exemplary and we acknowledge that,” said Dr Dakulala. “We now have the supplies to test for COVID-19 in all provinces and I call on everyone to be vigilant and enhance our testing in our health facilities.”
The GeneXpert cartridges were jointly funded by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Australia, Ministry of Foreign Affair and Trade of New Zealand, the Pacific Community, the Pacific Island Health Officers Association and WHO. The supplies were transported to Papua New Guinea through Australia’s Pacific Corridor, which is ensuring essential services and supplies can reach the Pacific.
“We greatly value the support of our partners, the Governments of Australia and New Zealand in procuring these supplies and in bringing them to the country”, said Dr Luo Dapeng, WHO Representative in Papua New Guinea. “We will sustain our support not only in delivering supplies but also in continuing to provide technical assistance in the pandemic response.”
“Australia is committed to strengthening the health security of PNG”, said Andrea Cole, Counsellor, Health Security, Australian High Commission. “We are pleased to work with other partners, including the WHO and New Zealand, to support Papua New Guinea’s response to COVID-19 and ensure it has the supplies to enhance testing in the country.”
“Strong testing capability is an essential tool for addressing the challenges presented by this pandemic and for protecting communities”, said Adam Linnell, First Secretary, New Zealand High Commission. “We value our close partnership with the Government of Papua New Guinea, the World Health Organization and the Government of Australia.”
As of 15 July 2020, Papua New Guinea has 11 cases of COVID-19, with the last case confirmed on 25 June. As the number of cases continue to increase worldwide, the risk of COVID-19 importation into the country remains very high.
“All the efforts of everyone have greatly helped us in the response and I thank all the partners for the support to date”, said Dr Dakulala. “I call the public to continue to be vigilant and practice prevention measures as the risk remains in our country.”
