EU allocates $251M fund to tackle coronavirus outbreak

ISTANBUL

The European Commission on Monday announced an allocation of €232 million (some $251 million) for global efforts to tackle the deadly coronavirus.

"The European Commission is working around the clock to support EU Member States and strengthen international efforts to slow the spread of COVID-19," the commission said in a statement.

The commission noted that a part of these funds will be allocated immediately to different sectors, while the rest will be released in the next months.

Janez Lenarcic, a commissioner for crisis management, said: “With more than 2,600 lives lost already, there is no option but to prepare at all levels.

"Our new aid package will support the World Health Organisation [WHO] and target funding to ensure countries with weaker health systems are not left behind."

The aid package will be used for the World Health Organization researches, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, research studies in Africa, and pharmaceutical industry's studies.

In China, the epicenter of the virus, the death toll from the outbreak has reached 2,594, with over 77,000 confirmed cases.

Following the global spread of the virus, the WHO declared the outbreak an international health emergency.