December 3 (SeeNews) - The World Bank said its board of executive directors have approved $29.5 million (26.1 million euro) in financing to Albania to help the country implement reforms in the public health sector and rehabilitate healthcare facilities damaged in the November 2019 earthquake.
The financing will help Albania rehabilitate hospitals in Kruja and Lezha, as well as several departments in the Mother Theresa National Referral Hospital in Tirana, the World Bank said in a statement earlier this week.
Furthermore, part of the funding will be used for the procurement of medical equipment for the General Pediatric Hospital and the Hospital of Laci and to support the implementation of a regional health information system, which will enable stronger coordination and integration of services.
The World Bank is providing the financing under its Health Sector Improvement Project, which has already supported the rehabilitation of three hospitals, the implementation of the regional health information system in four hospitals and the reconstruction of the Laci hospital, which was destroyed by the 2019 earthquake.
A magnitude 6.3 earthquake hit Albania on November 26, causing 51 fatalities, leaving 17,000 people displaced, and ultimately affecting more than 200,000 people in 11 municipalities.
($ = 0.8858 euro)