KARACHI: As part of the Hussain Dawood Pledge worth Rs1 billion, the Engro Foundation has committed to providing Rs20 million in financial assistance to the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital to expand the Covid-19 testing capacity across southern Punjab and strengthen the health sector to cope with the pandemic.

Under the “Southern Punjab Screening Program — Free of Cost” campaign, the Engro Foundation would sponsor the Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre to use its existing network of pathology laboratory collection centres to provide free of cost testing services to the deserving patients.

To ensure maximum coverage of the rural population, the testing campaign would be initially deployed in Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan, Layyah, Muzaffargarh, Bahawalpur and Bahawalnagar, a press release said on Wednesday.

According to Hussain Dawood, Engro Corporation chairman: “The rate of growth of Covid-19 in Pakistan exposes our healthcare system to a multitude of risks. It is only through partnerships that we will be able to amplify enablement and create the desired impact.”

Ghias Khan, President and CEO of Engro Corporation, said: “The gradual increase in number of Covid-19 cases in Southern Punjab has placed an additional burden on the region’s healthcare sector. It is imperative that the rate of testing is increased in these areas for early detection and control of local virus transmission.”

Published in Dawn, April 30th, 2020