Egypt Sends Emergency Medical Aid to Sudan

Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah El Sisi ordered on Wednesday 7 July 2021 the dispatch of emergency aid to Sudan, including 38 tons of medical aid, to support the country’s health sector in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

According to a statement by the Egyptian Presidency, Egypt’s Ministry of Health sent 300 oxygen cylinders and 300 oxygen regulators. Egypt also sent a shipment of full doses of Hepatitis C medicine to treat 11,000 patients in total as part of Egypt’s initiative to treat one million Hepatitis C patients in Africa.

Health Ministry Spokesman Khaled Mogahed said in a statement that the shipments arrived at Khartoum airport on Wednesday morning and were delivered using the Egyptian Armed Forces’ military planes.

He added that Minister Hala Zayed, as head of the Executive Office of the Council of Arab Health Ministers,  also coordinated the shipment of anaesthesia drugs and supplies worth $USD 200,000 provided by the Arab League to Sudan.

For its part, Sudan expressed gratitude for Egypt’s efforts and added that this kind of assistance is timely and significant as Africa continues to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, a statement by the Egyptian Presidency said.

The Egyptian Presidency’s statement added that the aid reflects the strength of historical and national ties between Egypt and Sudan, and that the two states will continue to provide essential support and send medical aid to boost the countries’ health diplomacy.

Egypt and Sudan’s foreign ministers have been engaging in a diplomatic campaign to reach a legally binding agreement over the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam and are currently meeting in New York to lobby the United Nations Security Council’s (UNSC) to take action and exert pressure on Ethiopia.