Devon Evans, Gleaner Writer

Ocho Rios, St Ann

The Ministry of Health's supply of drugs has been greatly replenished with a donation of US$1 million ($71 million) worth of medicine and essential drugs.

The donation was made to the ministry Wednesday by the Canada-based Destiny Foundation, during a function held at the Bahía Príncipe Hotel in Runaway Bay, St Ann.

Anti-retroviral drugs

David Singh, chairman of Destiny Foundation, said the drugs, which are expected to be distributed by the ministry to institutions islandwide, included a large quantity of anti-retroviral drugs to assist Jamaica in dealing with the serious challenges posed by HIV/AIDS.

He said the donation represents another portion of the US$10 million ($710 million) worth of assistance the foundation had committed to the people of Jamaica in 2004.

Singh said Jamaica had already received US$4 million ($284 million) of that amount in assistance and that the foundation intended to disburse the remaining US$6 million ($426 million) over the next two years.

Following the passage of Hurricane Ivan in 2004, Destiny Foundation provided assistance to Jamaica in the form of hospital beds, water tablets and water purification systems.

In 2005, a quantity of medicines was delivered to the Bustamante Hospital for Children and, in 2006, a similar donation was made to the hospital by the foundation.

Poverty reduction

Singh said the foundation was now looking at a number of areas of needs in Jamaica to which the remaining US$6 million could be disbursed, including the area of poverty reduction.

"We are concerned about AIDS, but we are also concerned about diabetes and one area we are very concerned about is the area of poverty," he said.

"We want to find areas that do not have potable water, we want to find the areas where poverty continues to be a leading cause of some of the other bigger issues we have, such as AIDS."

The donation was received on behalf of the Ministry of Health by the ministry's resource mobilisation coordinator, Celia Barnes, who expressed gratitude to the members of the foundation for their gesture.