The Coalition Against COVID-19 (CACOVID), a private sector initiative established to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, has donated N220 million worth of medical equipment to the Oyo State Government.

Mr Taiwo Adisa, Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, in a statement on Sunday in Ibadan said CACOVID also donated N30 million to the state government.

He said the CACOVID Team Lead in-charge of Oyo and Osun States, Dr Timothy Aroowogun, made the donation on behalf of the coalition.

“The objective of donating the equipment is to support the state government in eliminating COVID-19, help the citizens and also help the health workers to contain the pandemic in the state.

“The First Bank Nigeria Limited, as a frontline member of the CACOVID initiative, is partnering with the government to provide the much-needed support in the fight against COVID-19 in order to stop the spread of coronavirus in the country,” he said.

Receiving the donation, Gov. Seyi Makinde, represented by his deputy, Rauf Olaniyan, appreciated the CACOVID team for the initiative.

He gave an assurance that all the donated medical equipment and supplies would be deployed to the soon to be opened Saki 100-bed isolation and treatment centre.

According to the governor, the opening of an isolation centre in Saki is strategic due to its location as a border town to neighbouring West African countries.

“The Saki Isolation Centre is going to be three-in-one. It will have what you call an observatory and isolation and treatment centre.

“The reason we need to have an observatory is that Saki is a border town and many people come in from different parts of the West African states, especially Burkina Faso and the Benin Republic, they come in through that area,” he said.

In his remarks, Prof. Temitope Alonge, a member of the Oyo State COVID-19 Task Force, described all the equipment donated as appropriate for the treatment pattern being followed in the state in the fight against COVID-19.

Alonge said: “What thrilled me is that the CACOVID team took cognisance of the disease pattern that we are managing and decided to provide equipment that is appropriate.

“On many occasions, people have made donations that are good on paper but in terms of usefulness, probably not as good.

“But what they have done is to provide everything from the most mundane to the expensive ventilators, which are all going to be utilised for the management of this disease.

“And to top it all, they brought us about 40 cylinders of oxygen, meaning for the next one year or thereabout, there may not be a need for the Saki Centre to run to Ibadan to come and collect oxygen.”

Some of the equipment donated were Lead ECG electrode, heavy-duty apron, autoclave, auto syringe pump, biohazard bag, blood warmer, centrifuge (refrigerator), defibrillators (AED) and portable ultrasound imaging.

Others include mobile digital x-ray unit, face shield, protective goggles, hospital gowns, oxygen cylinders, wheelchairs, oxygen concentrator, oxygen regulators, nebuliser, kidney dish, patient multiparameter monitor, stretcher and suction devices.