The Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) and the European Investment Bank (EIB) have partnered to provide €30 million (US$36 million) in financing for Caribbean countries to purchase COVID-19 vaccines and make new healthcare investments.
The concessional funding will help ensure the affordability of the vaccine purchases and public healthcare expenditure at this critical time for the region. The funding will also facilitate other health-related emergency expenditure to limit the spread of the virus, help protect vulnerable groups, and accelerate the region’s return to normal economic activities.
The financing is expected to strengthen the public health systems that are dealing with the pandemic including, improving capacity for testing, tracing and treatment, logistics, storage, transport and monitoring activities, as well as the purchase of vaccines and the execution of vaccination campaigns. The concessional financing falls under the broader CDB-EIB cooperation to improve resilience in the region.
