By Mekonnen Teshome Tollera
Millennium COVID Care Center (MCCC)
In Ethiopia, it is a public knowledge that the country’s prominent tycoon, Sheikh Mohammed H. Ali Al-Amoudi and his companies under MIDROC Ethiopia come in the forefront when Ethiopia and its people seek out any assistance due to natural and human-made disasters.
To this end, the Sheikh has made a series of assistances and responses to the current global pandemic - the Coronavirus (COVID-19) - as part of his personal and MIDROC Ethiopia Social Responsibility Scheme in various forms.
Birr 120m donation
Sheikh Mohammed recently made a donation of Birr 120m to Ethiopia through the Addis Ababa City Administration in support of its fight against COVID-19. The contribution is the largest private donation to combat the disease.
The donation is meant to purchase various medical equipment including gloves, face masks, gowns and other medical supplies useful for fighting the pandemic.
Deputy Mayor of the Addis Ababa city has expressed his appreciation to Sheikh Mohammed Al-Amoudi for his generous support at this historical juncture.
During the pledging of the donation, Mohammed said, through his local management team, that MIDROC Ethiopia will make available, within its means, material resources, office and factory space and product to support the fight against this new disease. He added, “Our companies can only survive and prosper if the Ethiopian people as a whole are secure and healthy and so this fight is our fight too. My companies and the people are united in this struggle.”
Over Birr 500, 000 Intravenous IV fluid donation
President of St. George’s Executive Board Ato Abennet Gebre-Maskel handing over the donation
Two of Sheikh Mohammed’d companies, MOHA Soft Drinks Industry S.C. and Derba-MIDROC Cement Plc in collaboration with the Executive Board of the famous and historic Ethiopian football club, the St. George, recently made a donation of Intravenous (IV) fluids worth Birr 500,000 to the Addis Ababa City Administration to assist in combating COVID-19.
The donation was handed over to city Deputy Major Takele Uma in response to his latest call for public support to his administration’s effort in the fight against the pandemic.
After handing over the donation, President of St. George’s Executive Board Ato Abennet Gebre-Maskel said that as St. George is a football club of the people, it is its culture to make swift responses when the people face any challenge like the present global pandemic – COVID-19.
He further reaffirmed that the club would also do its level best in extending supports whenever required.
The President also called on the public to carefully follow all the precautionary measures announced by the city government and public health professionals to arrest the spreading of the pandemic.
Deputy Mayor Takele Uma expressed his appreciation for the prompt response and urged other community members to follow the exemplary support of St. George Club.
Availing Millennium COVID Care Center (MCCC)
As part of the national Epidemic response effort, Sheikh Mohammed has availed and facilitated the Addis Ababa Millennium Hall, the biggest in east Africa, for the Ethiopian Ministry of Health to republish it as a provisional hospital to enable the country get ready for possible extreme eventualities of the fatal COVID-19.
The Addis Ababa Millennium Hall which was constructed in 2007 by Sheikh Mohammed Al-Amoudi for the celebration of the exceptional Ethiopian Millennium is now administered under the Addis Park Development and Management Plc (APDM), a sister company of the MIDROC Ethiopia Investment Group.
The hall which has a strategic location on Africa Avenue (Bole Road) was design by a Dubai based architectural firm – PAG – and it can accommodate 20,000 spectators and is equipped with state-of-the-art communication facilities (sound and light effect technologies) that makes it unique and unprecedented in the country.
The temporary treatment center, located is now designed and readied to accommodate 1000 patients.
According to Dr. Ismile Shemsedin , head of the MCCC, the temporary treatment center is consist of 18 sections and nine wards including an Emergency Triage rooms for intensive care and a grand Intensive Care Unit , ICU, (equivalent with three ICUs with 28 beds) as well as 70 beds sections for recovered patients with their own team leaders and coordinators who also act again collectively and collaboratively as a center.
The doctor also indicated that the center is readied considering all the necessary preparations with international infection transmission prevention standards, and he added that the temporary center will be staffed with highly selected medical staff to ensure competence and team work.
Helping the Needy During Holidays
Cattle donated by Sheikh Mohammed Al-Amoudi to the needy
On April 18, 2020, eve of the Ethiopian Eater, Shekh Mohammed Al-Amoudi, through one of his companies – Ethio Agri-CEFT – donated 40 bulls with a view to distribute meat to low-income community members and to curb man-made price hikes of consumable commodities.
Deputy Major of the Addis Aababa city Takele Uma , after receiving the donation at the premises of the Addis Ababa Abattoirs Enterprise, thanked Sheikh Mohammed Al-Amoudi and indicated that the meat of the cattle would be distributed to the needy in Addis Ababa for the holiday.
MIDROC companies echo their chairman’s supportive role
Mohammed’s companies in Ethiopia have also made same in providing significant individual donations in support of the national pandemic fighting effort
For example, on 31st of March 2020, the MIDROC Technology Group and its employees separately contributed over Birr 10m to the fight against COVID-19.
Besides, the companies are also aggressively working to protect their employees from the pandemic through various awareness creation activities, provision of protective materials and conducting bodie temperature testing using Medical Infrared Thermometers at the gate of the companies every morning before the employees enter theie work places.
For instance, Ethio Agri-CEFT indicated that it has been distributing hand-gloves, sanitizers, alcohol, face-masks to all its employees and the clinics at the various farms are also doing their best to assist in the same effort. Similar activities have also been undertaken by MIDROC Technology Group (MTG) and other sister companies.
According to the World Health Organization, Ethiopia is strengthening surveillance, diagnostics and medical care and public health information in readiness for a potential coronavirus outbreak.
As COVID-19 is a new pathogen, Ethiopia, along with many other countries initially did not have the capacity to diagnose it. Adamu Tayachew heads an eight-member technician team at the National Influenza and Arbovirus Laboratory. “We started collecting samples on 25 January 2020. We shipped 11 samples in three phases to South Africa for analysis. The remaining we tested here.”
However, this time around, Ethiopia has many COVID-19 testing spots and isolation centers across the country. Thanks to the collaborative works undertaken with all stakeholders including the business community where MIDROC Ethiopia and its Chairman Sheikh Mohammed Al-Amoudi play a significant role.
Comments