First phase of the PPA Solidarity initiative ends its cycle of activities against COVID-19 in the Amazon region

First phase of the PPA Solidarity initiative ends its cycle of activities against COVID-19 in the Amazon region
Credits: Instituto Juruti Sustentável
After more than a year working to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic, PPA Solidarity partners ended their activity cycle. The project results will be consolidated in a report, with its publication estimated for the next few months.

 After more than a year working to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic, PPA Solidarity partners ended their activity cycle. The project results will be consolidated in a report, with its publication estimated for the next few months.

 One of those partners is ECAM Social Businesses. In August, ECAM presented the outcomes of their private sector partnership. They implemented measures of planning, management, and execution to combat COVID-19 in the cities of Belterra, Mojuí dos Campos, Santarém and Abaetetuba, in the state of Pará, besides vulnerable communities in the State of Amapá.

 This project distributed hospital equipment and PPE to health professionals. Hygiene kits, food baskets, and informative materials were distributed to the general population, reaching more than 1.500 families in Pará. Awareness campaigns were also created. In Amapá, the enterprise supported 60 traditional quilombola communities.

 The “PPA Solidarity: COVID-19 Response in the Amazon” initiative was created by USAID/Brazil together with the New Partnerships Initiative (NPI Expand), the Partnership Platform for the Amazon (PPA), and SITAWI Finance for Good. It engages the private sector in strategic actions to leverage innovative and scalable solutions to strengthen emergency and COVID-19 responses.

 During the first phase, the program worked with partners from civil society and the private sector in four fronts: communications campaigns to address risks and community engagement in mitigation and protective measures against COVID-19; promotion of measures to prevent and control cases; support local health systems (hospitals, health clinics, and community health services); and assistance to entrepreneurs, small businesses with social impact, producer groups and cooperatives, in order to allow the flow of income generation to the communities.

 More than 1.2 million protective masks and 20 thousand food baskets and hygiene kits were distributed by the project, with more than 1.5 million people receiving prevention information.

 Thirty-eight public health services benefited from donations. Among those are the health systems of three municipalities of Calha Norte Paraense - Faro, Terra Santa, and Oriximiná - and services in the interior of Amazonas, in the municipalities of Tabatinga, Tefé, Manacapuru, and Humaitá.

 In these locations, oxygen concentrators, medical-hospital, and personal protection equipment were delivered to health professionals. Beds were donated to Intermediate Care Units (ICU).

 Three municipalities received 20 thousand pieces of equipment through investments made by PPA Solidarity and Rio do Norte Mining company (MRN).

 Agenda Pública was a representative of the Sustainable Territories Program (PTS) and worked in partnership with ECAM and Imazon. In total, PPA Solidarity mobilized around R$ 18.2 million (approximately US$3.6 million) in co-investments for strategic partners, catalyzing the private sector actions in the region.

 To learn more about PPA Solidarity, access PPA's website (in Portuguese).  Follow PPA's digital channels to check the launch of the publication.