The association of Cubans residing in the United Kingdom sent a donation of 144,000 syringes to the island to support the COVID-19 vaccination campaign.
This donation joins other similar ones already made or coordination process by emigrants in other nations and was made possible thanks to the work of Cubans residing in the European country, and to the support contributions by citizens and organizations in solidarity with Cuba, said the group Cubans in the UK in a statement quoted by Prensa Latina news agency.
One of the residents in the United Kingdom, Daniesky Acosta, told the state media that his association will continue to raise funds to support the fight against the pandemic on the island.
Organizaciones solidarias y de cubanos residentes en países europeos realizan una campaña para enviar un contenedor a #Cuba con insumos destinados a apoyar la inmunización contra la #COVID19 https://t.co/yjMQ7IWOB4 pic.twitter.com/WUPKBk4Tdd
— EmbaCuba-UK (@EmbaCuba_UK) April 12, 2021
In the last week, reports have been published of other donations to Cuba from various countries, in what appears to be a campaign to support the island for the acquisition of the necessary medical supplies to guarantee the plan to vaccinate its entire population this year.
The Cuban news agency itself reported a donation of 120,000 kits of syringes and needles collected by Cubans living in Panama this weekend and sent to the Caribbean country on a flight operated by Cubana de Aviación.
This Monday, for its part, Prensa Latina also reported that solidarity organizations and Cuban residents in Belgium and the Netherlands launched a campaign to send a container to Cuba with supplies intended to support the COVID-19 immunization campaign; while this Wednesday it affirmed that Cubans residing in Honduras and activists from this nation began collecting syringes for the island’s health system.
Meanwhile, the Italian ANSA news agency also reported on a similar initiative developed by the ELAM Chile Doctors Group, who were trained in Cuba, to raise $42,000 and buy syringes for the island.
Dr. Amaya Candia told the source that “we thought about the least cumbersome and decided on a product that would help the vaccine issue, and we were inspired by what was also done by Argentina—where a similar campaign is underway—and Italy to break the blockade,” given the scarcity of these implements on the island.
Similarly, the Canadian Network of Solidarity with Cuba announced earlier this month that in the coming weeks it would send to the island a container with a donation of 1,920,000 syringes to support the COVID-19 vaccination program.