The novel coronavirus (nCov) in China has claimed 563 lives as of Feb. 6, with over 28,000 confirmed cases globally.

Donating up to US$100 million for coronavirus response

To help combat the nCoV outbreak, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, co-founded by Microsoft's Bill Gates, announced on Feb. 5 that it is giving US$100 million (over S$138 million) in funding.

In late January, the foundation said that it would commit US$10 million (over S$13 million), but significantly upped the figure due to the rapid increase in deaths and confirmed infections nationwide.

According to a press release on its website, up to US$60 million of the money will be contributed to developing vaccines, treatments and diagnostics for the nCoV.

Up to US$20 million will be used to accelerate the detection, isolation and treatment of people diagnosed with the nCoV.

Protecting at-risk populations in Africa and South Asia

The remaining US$20 million will be committed to enhancing protections for at-risk populations in Africa and South Asia.

The foundation stated that recent epidemics, such as the H1N1 influenza in 2009, have greatly affected populations living in extreme poverty.

Many people living in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia have limited access to quality primary health care, a factor that increases their health risks.

The funds that the foundation provides will help the public health authorities in these regions to strengthen their emergency operations centres, implement effective disease surveillance efforts and improve their capacity to safely isolate and treat confirmed cases.

Assisting WHO and Chinese frontline responders

The World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the nCoV outbreak a public health emergency on Jan. 31, citing the need for a worldwide coordinated effort to enhance preparedness.

The Gates foundation is contributing more resources to assist the WHO, Chinese frontline responders and others at global and national levels.

The CEO of Gates foundation, Mark Suzman, said:

“Multilateral organisations, national governments, the private sector and philanthropies must work together to slow the pace of the outbreak, help countries protect their most vulnerable citizens and accelerate the development of the tools to bring this epidemic under control.Our hope is that these resources will help catalyse a rapid and effective international response. This response should be guided by science, not fear, and it should build on the steps that the WHO has taken to date.”

Top images from Wikipedia.