The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Bangladesh and United Enterprises & Co. Ltd (UECL) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to take collaborative response during and after the COVID-19 pandemic in Bangladesh.
UNDP Resident Representative Sudipto Mukerjee signed the MoU with UECL Managing Director Moinuddin Hasan Rashid at the latter’s office on Wednesday, a UNDP press release said.
“The most important thing is the coming together of two important players which share a joint commitment to respond to this (COVID-19) crisis,” Sudipto said at the signing ceremony.
He pointed out that although COVID-9 might not have a very high death toll, its collateral impacts are likely to create much greater socio-economic hardships.
“The increased risks of losing jobs and income, inability to easily access essential services including normal medical care in hospitals are some of the hardships that will disproportionately affect the poor”, Sudipto added.
“So, what we are trying to do is to make things easier for the people to follow the public order – which is to stay home and prevent the virus from spreading and therefore, this partnership will deliver food at the doorsteps of the poor households,” he said.
UECL Managing Director Rashid pointed out that as an organisation, most of their entities are related to providing service to the people.
“First the hospital, second the supermarkets, then we have a pharmacy chain. Our port is in operation since the government has instructed to ensure that the food supply is on time,” he said.
Under the MoU, UNDP and UECL will collaborate in providing emergency support to vulnerable communities during national crisis/climatic disasters.
