Flour Mills of Nigeria Group (FMN Group) has donated 1.5 million dollars worth of ventilators, other essential personal protective equipment and testing kits to the Federal Government to fight against COVID-19.
A statement issued in Lagos on Thursday by the Group’s Chief Operating Officer, Mr Boye Olusanya, said that the supplies were an additional contribution by FMN to support the government in combating the Coronavirus pandemic in Nigeria.
Olusanya said that FMN, through its Chairman, Mr John Coumantaros, had earlier redeemed an initial N1billion pledge to the Federal government to support the fight against the pandemic.
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“The medical supplies will facilitate 100 per day field-testing capacity and 35,000 laboratory-based testing capacity.
“The supplies include 331,000 pieces of PPE (N95 masks, coveralls, protective gloves, protective eyewear) enough to provide regular use for 10,000 Nigerian healthcare professionals for over two months.
“There are also 75 Ventilators and these supplies will be delivered to the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) to ramp up the capacity in Nigeria,” he said
Olusanya said that in spite of procurement restrictions on supplies by several countries to ensure their frontline responders had sufficient supplies, FMN ensured that it sourced and procured the critical supplies for Nigeria.
The COO added that some of the items on the first batch include ventilators, protective equipment and testing kits, assuring that all the supplies would have arrived and handed over by the end of April.
“FMN initiated a global supply chain plan to help provide the Nigerian government with tangible, and tactical support during the global economic lockdown.
“This initiative led by the Chairman of the FMN Group, involved the leadership of the NCDC, Ministry of Finance, vendors from five Nations, multiple logistics partners, and a team drawn from the FMN group’s operational leadership.
“The team scaled through varying national restrictions on medical supply procurement, limited stock, transport restrictions, but stayed resolute in the race to help Nigeria manage and flatten the curve,” Olusanya said.
He said that the medical supplies procured from Dubai, U.S., Canada, Greece and China started arriving Nigeria from April 18, through to April 27.
Olusanya added that following a directive from FMN’s Chairman the group had begun deployment of 400 million naira food relief packages to vulnerable communities most affected by the lockdown in 11 states across the nation.
“To reduce the impact of the Coronavirus outbreak, we will continue to work with the federal government and related agencies to provide relief materials.
“The safety of Nigerians is paramount to us, so we encourage all Nigerians to adhere to the necessary protective measures against the virus and its spread.
“FMN, relying on its 60-year-old profile as an agro-giant in Nigeria’s critical food value-chain and a significant contributor to Nigeria’s quest, will use its global supply chain network to help Nigeria defend itself against COVID-19,” he said.