AMMAN —
Prime Minister
Bisher Al-Khasawneh said that the volume of public spending on
the coronavirus pandemic and its repercussions in the areas of health care,
social protection, and support for the affected sectors since the beginning of
the crisis until the end of last year exceeded JD3 billion, according to local
media outlets.
اضافة اعلان
Speaking on
Saturday at the opening of a conference on Jordan’s experience in confronting
the COVID-19 pandemic, the prime minister said that 18 million vaccine doses were
purchased by the Kingdom, pointing out that this matter was followed up by His
Majesty King Abdullah and supervised by HRH Crown Prince Hussein.
Several agencies
and ministries that had dealt with the pandemic through crisis management are
participating in the two-day conference that is organized by the
Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network (EMPHNET).
Khasawneh said that
the right decisions were taken during the pandemic in a manner that took into
account both health and economic aspects. He added that health cadres were
working around the clock to deal with all challenges, the most important of
which was to ensure bed capacity in hospitals, indicating that the gradual
opening of economic sectors proved correct.
“We have worked to
boost the
health sector capabilities in record time by 350 percent by
establishing field hospitals, providing thousands of isolation and intensive
care beds and respirators, and appointing thousands of doctors, nurses and
technicians,” he said.
Jordan was a
success story in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic, which showcased the
national institutions’ potential for innovation and achievement, and its
people’s readiness to make sacrifices in the “darkest circumstances”, Khasawneh
added.
“His Majesty the
King insisted on acquiring respirators at the beginning of the pandemic, and
therefore we had no shortage of them, thanks to the foresight, great wisdom,
and respect enjoyed by His Majesty King Abdullah, and this enabled us to
maximize our capacity of medical devices and vaccinations during the pandemic,”
he added.
Khasawneh pointed
out that Jordan was not spared the effects of the pandemic, which posed great
challenges at the time, adding that the
COVID-19 repercussions went far beyond
the catastrophic impact on health, leading to the erosion of global economic
and trade structures, as it curtailed movement, changed habits and behaviors,
and disrupted educational systems and development plans.
He stressed that
about 2,500 employees, including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, support medical
workers, and laboratory specialists were appointed overnight to address the
pandemic.
EMPHNET Executive
Director and conference chairman Mohannad Ensour said the meeting will shine
light on the key results and lessons learned from the pandemic, and the
challenges Jordan and the health sector have experienced.
He said the conference will tackle the national response,
and the roles and responsibilities of concerned parties.
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