Spain donates gowns, masks and other protective material to Bolivia to fight pandemic

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Spain has donated to Bolivia some material required for protection in the fight against Covid-19, consisting mainly of gowns, masks and gloves, in response to an international appeal made by the Bolivian government in late January, with the support of the European Union.

The donation consists of 10,000 chemical and biological protection gowns, 22,580 FFP2 masks, 59,000 latex gloves, 3,190 safety goggles, 424,000 three-layer surgical masks and 1,500 disposable nursing caps, as reported by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) in a press release.

The shipment involves a total cost of EUR 280,000, but as part of the Team Europe program, the EU has financed 75% of the humanitarian cargo transport from Madrid to La Paz. In addition, Boliviana de Aviación (BOA) airline has contributed to the operation, offering transport costs considerably lower than the market for flights of this type since March 7th.

The supplies landed last Friday and were handed over to the Bolivian authorities at a ceremony attended by the country’s Foreign Minister, Rogelio Mayta Mayta, the Spanish Ambassador, Javier Gassó Matoses, the EU Ambassador, Michael Dóczy, and the AECID Coordinator, Juan Pita, among others.

The delivery of these emergency supplies is a complement to the cooperation between Spain and Bolivia in the fight against the pandemic, which includes an extensive training program for medical specialties already underway, as well as training processes for the management of Covid-19 in which high-level professionals from Spain and Bolivia are taking part.