Washington D.C. January 12, 2020 (PAHO) – In 2020, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) received commitments for more than $263 million to provide technical support and supplies for the fight against COVID-19 in the Americas.

“We are grateful to all of our partners who have made it possible for us to assist countries in the Americas as they take on this deadly pandemic,” said PAHO Director Carissa F. Etienne. “COVID-19 will not be defeated until everyone is safe. Our public health response to the disease must leave no one behind.”

The $263 million included direct financial support to PAHO, contributions channeled through WHO to fund the response to COVID-19 in the Americas, and agreements negotiated with PAHO member states with support from a range of international financial institutions.

Partners that donated a combined $91 million directly to PAHO include the governments of Belize, Canada, Colombia, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Commission. Donors also included multiple UN agencies and regional and international development banks, the Caribbean Confederation of Credit Unions, the Foundation Yamuni Tabush, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, the Rockefeller Foundation, and individuals who gave to the PAHO COVID-19 Response Fund.

Various partners supported PAHO by contributing a combined $101.3 million through WHO to the fight against COVID-19 in the Americas.

Finally, PAHO’s member countries contributed about $70.8 million to fund the public health response to COVID-19 in their own countries. For a complete list of contributors, see our donor page.

With these contributions, PAHO technical cooperation to countries and purchase of essential supplies and equipment included 119 shipments of personal protective equipment to 34 nations, 21.4 million COVID-19 PCR tests for 36 countries and territories, and more than 224 trainings on testing, tracking, and patient care. As a key component of its technical guidance to countries, PAHO disseminated 111 guidelines and recommendations.

“These funds have allowed us to work side by side with ministries of health and other key partners to tackle this pandemic,” said Ciro Ugarte, Director of PAHO’s Health Emergencies Department. “We’ve been able to provide supplies and training critical to both reducing the incidence of cases and treating patients.”

“But there are enormous challenges that will require continued support,” he added. “We will need resources to help member countries carry out vaccination of over 465 million people in 39 countries and territories in 2021. And while vaccination is rolled out, we must continue our support to limit transmission, reduce mortality, and provide essential health services.”

The Americas has been hit hard by COVID-19. All 54 countries and territories in the Americas have been impacted, and three of the ten countries with the most COVID-19 cases globally are located in the Americas – the United States, Brazil, and Argentina. Afrodescendent and indigenous communities have been particularly affected.

As of Jan. 11, 921,256 people had died from COVID-19 and nearly 40 million had contracted the disease in the Americas.

The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) works with the countries of the Americas to improve the health and quality of life of its population. Founded in 1902, it is the world’s oldest international public health agency. It serves as the Regional Office of WHO for the Americas and is the specialized health agency of the Inter-American system.