RESPONDING TO URGENT HEALTHCARE NEEDS

2020 has been an unforgiving yet transformative year for the healthcare industry. The COVID-19 pandemic has inflicted devastating human costs and has put immense pressure on national healthcare systems across the globe. The unprecedented nature of the pandemic and the rapid speed of contagion has left many countries’ healthcare systems to grapple with overcrowded capacity and insufficient supplies – exposing the fragilities of the sector.

While the short-term demand for testing and the race to find a treatment or vaccine intensifies, governments are having to reallocate budgets to finance the urgent healthcare services. In addition to sourcing critical supplies like PPE, test kits, and ventilators, funding is needed for preventative healthcare initiatives such as assessing the feasibility of immunity passports, facilities for mandatory quarantine periods, the up-scaling of national contact tracing initiatives, and mass vaccinations that can be expected once one becomes approved.

Many OIC countries are facing these supply challenges as well as demand for funding at a heightened scale, as low income and least developed countries who lack the necessary healthcare infrastructure are at greater risk of the pandemic’s implications. In an effort to combat this, the Islamic Development Bank Group devised the ‘Strategic Preparedness and Response Facility’ which provided US$ 2.3 billion to mitigate the negative health and socio-economic impact of the COVID -19 pandemic – including USD 150 million for ICIEC insurance coverage.

ICIEC has been providing credit and political risk insurance to sustain imports of strategic commodities, to protect investments, and to minimize volatility. In prioritizing the most pressing needs of OIC citizens, the Corporation has focused its efforts on addressing the urgent demand for pharmaceuticals, healthcare supplies and agricultural commodities, among other essential products. ICIEC has recently provided support to critical healthcare projects in member countries, helping to ensure that their systems are better able to absorb the negative effects of health crises like COVID-19, saving lives in the process.

For example, ICIEC recently provided EUR 143 million toward the construction of two new hospitals and five new medical units in five additional hospitals in the West African Republic of Côte d’Ivoire. Prior to this project, Cote d’Ivoire was facing significant infrastructure deficiencies in the health sector. Approximately 33% of the population was living more than 5 km away from a healthcare facility while 10% live more than 15 km away. ICIEC’s involvement in the project enables the Ivorian population to access an improved health system, allowing the Ivory Coast to better serve its citizens and achieve its National Development Plan targets in the process. For example, ICIEC recently provided EUR 143 million toward the construction of two new hospitals and five new medical units in five additional hospitals in the West African Republic of Côte d’Ivoire. Prior to this project, Cote d’Ivoire was facing significant infrastructure deficiencies in the health sector. Approximately 33% of the population was living more than 5 km away from a healthcare facility while 10% live more than 15 km away. ICIEC’s involvement in the project enables the Ivorian population to access an improved health system, allowing the Ivory Coast to better serve its citizens and achieve its National Development Plan targets in the process.

The two new hospitals, one located in Adzope and the other in Aboisso, will collectively have a capacity of over 400 beds and will significantly improve the availability of healthcare services in each region using state of the art equipment. In addition, the project will finance five new medical units in five hospitals across the country. This includes a radiotherapy center in Abengourou, an emergency unit each in Daoukro and Seguela, a traumatology center in Toumodi, and a surgery and emergency unit in Bouna.

The construction of hospitals in Côte d’Ivoire was originally part of the government’s National Development Plan for 2016-2020 but has now become a major support for the Republic’s current efforts to contain the COVID-19 pandemic. The two hospitals will employ around 600 local people and will foster the development of a micro-economy in the areas surrounding them. The project also supports the economic recovery by facilitating the intra-OIC trade of services and human capital between Cote d’Ivoire and Morocco, both Member Countries of OIC.

ICIEC also recently extended the non-payment insurance for the supply and installation of state-of-the-art CT scan equipment in Punjab, Pakistan for USD 2.3 million. This project will greatly assist the Pakistani healthcare sector in fighting the pandemic by providing doctors with a more cost effective and accurate method for diagnosing patients. The project was funded as part of an ongoing program with the Government of Punjab to improve the lack of essential medical diagnostic equipment in the province. ICIEC’s involvement in the transaction also directly supports the Punjab Health Reforms Roadmap, initiated in April 2014, to improve the quality of healthcare facilities in Pakistan’s most populous province.

Looking toward continuing this support within member country healthcare sectors for the long-term recovery, financing technology will be an essential response to the crisis. In the macro environment, traditional IT companies such as Microsoft, Optum, Intel, and AWS will almost certainly begin venturing into the healthcare sector looking to develop large AI platforms aimed at predicting pandemics, forecasting patient volume across providers, authenticating reimbursement, and driving general well-being of the insured population through medication management and self-care enablement. ICIEC expects that financing healthcare technology will also be critical in the response to COVID-19, as a defense mechanism against another crisis.