Pandemic Preparedness and Health System Support

NISD’s signed activity record for February 2023 to March 2026 sets out a programme of pandemic preparedness and health system support.

The work included providing vehicles and health workers to reach remote communities with supplies and with information on disease prevention; renovating infrastructure and providing modern medical equipment, training and medicines at health centres and hospitals; outreach on health measures including masking, social distancing and improved local quarantine procedures; and work on equitable access to medical supplies, diagnostic test kits, treatments and vaccines.

The programme also established community-based reporting so that local people form the first line of defence when symptoms appear, an office for indicator monitoring tracking epidemiological data to detect clusters of illness, and reserve funds to meet a surge in demand — additional hospital beds, ventilators and urgent delivery of medical supplies in the event of shortages.

Special vehicles were kept available to ensure that older people, people with disabilities and other vulnerable groups could reach medical centres and obtain support.