World Bank to increase support to Middle East countries to fight coronavirus – The National

World Bank to increase support to Middle East countries to fight coronavirus – The National

World Bank to increase support to Middle East countries to fight coronavirus. The World Bank is extending support to Middle East and North African countries as they battle the coronavirus pandemic.. The immediate response includes financing, policy advice, and technical assistance to help countries cope with urgent health needs of the pandemic and slow the spread of the disease.. The lender's initial Covid-19 response in Mena countries includes new projects and operational measures in Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Yemen, Djibouti and West Bank and Gaza.. In Egypt, the World Bank will provide $7.9 million (Dh29m) to fund emergency response activities related to the Covid-19 outbreak including supporting the country in the delivery of equipment and supplies.. The World Bank also deployed an emergency response to help Morocco cope with the crisis including restructuring of $275m Disaster Risk Management Development Policy Loan with a Catastrophe Deferred Drawdown Option (Cat-DDO).. For West Bank and Gaza, an amount of $5.8m was allocated to help the Palestinian government deal with the pandemic.. In Yemen, a $26.9m IDA grant was approved to help the country immediately respond and mitigate the risks associated with the Covid-19 outbreak and limit the possible extent of the spread of the