MANILA, Philippines—A Vietnamese tycoon has donated over 750,000 face masks and personal protective equipment (PPE) to the Philippines on Wednesday (April 29) to support the fight against the coronavirus disease that has infected nearly 8,000 Filipinos.
[1/2] Today, Secretary @teddyboylocsin received over 750,000 masks and PPEs donated by Vietnamese business tycoon and well-known philanthropist, Mr. Johnathan Hanh Nguyen, to help protect DFA’s frontliners against COVID-19. pic.twitter.com/A7iuOl9aIX
— DFA Philippines (@DFAPHL) April 29, 2020
Foreign Affairs Secretary Teodoro Locsin Jr. received the 750,000 masks and 16,500 PPE sets from Henry Serrano Nguyen, son and representative of Vietnamese businessman and philanthropist Johnathan Hanhn Nguyen, in a small turnover ceremony, the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said in a statement.
The donor arranged a chartered flight to bring the medical supplies to the Philippines, with the assistance of the Department of Finance, Bureau of Customs and other agencies, the DFA statement said.
Locsin expressed gratitude to the generosity of Nguyen, saying his donation was essential to the Philippine government’s coronavirus response efforts.
As of Tuesday, the virus has infected 7,958 individuals in the Philippines, with 530 deaths and 975 recoveries.
Vietnam has among the lowest rate of coronavirus infection in the world. As of April 20, it had only 268 confirmed cases with 207 recoveries.
The Philippines has bought 1 million PPE sets worth P1.8 billion from China and is poised to buy 3 million more. The first batch of PPE sets has not been completely delivered to the Philippines, which is having difficulty transporting the supply from China.
