The World Bank has approved $114 million to help Nigeria tackle its COVID-19 pandemic, the global lender said on Friday according to Reuters. The money comes in the form of a $100 million loan and a $14 million grant to be split between Nigeria’s 36 states and federal-level procurement of medical equipment, tests and medicine. Africa’s most populous country has recorded more than 45,000 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 930 deaths, but low levels of testing have left a muddy picture of the outbreak’s severity. “Nigeria has ramped up its efforts to contain the COVID-19 outbreak, but more needs to done at the state level, which is at the front line of the response,” Shubham Chaudhuri, the World Bank’s director for Nigeria, said in its statement on Friday. The extension followed the approval of recommendations made by the PTF to President Muhammadu Buhari.

Source: Nigerian Tribune August 07, 2020 15:21 UTC