(Ecofin Agency) - Chinese billionaire Jack Ma (pictured), founder of Alibaba, announced on March 15 he will donate 20,000 testing kits and 100,000 face masks to each African country to help in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

The donor said this during a meeting with the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, stressing that the packages will be delivered to Addis Ababa, where Mr. Abiy will oversee their distribution. Mr. Ma is also providing pamphlets on how patients should be treated.

To date, 28 African nations have reported the presence of the virus with 362 confirmed cases. Worldwide, 174,000 cases have been reported; more than 6,000 people died while more than 77,000 others recovered.

Let’s note that Alibaba took this same action in Japan, Korea, Italy, Iran, and Spain.

André Chadrak