(AIRTEL SEYCHELLES) - Airtel Seychelles has made a generous donation of R1 million to the Ministry of Health towards the fight against COVID-19.

The secretary of state for health, Ambassador Marie-Pierre Lloyd, accepted the donation from the managing director of Airtel Seychelles, Amadou Dina, in the presence of Benjamin Choppy, principal secretary in the department of Information Communications Technology.

The assistance will allow the Ministry of Health to allocate support and resources to health workers who are on the frontline in the battle against COVID-19. This virus respects no borders and Airtel Seychelles is committed to playing its part in tackling the pandemic.

Mr Dina once again seized the opportunity to thank all the health workers and the frontliners for their dedication and sacrifice to keep Seychelles safe.

“Today, we announce our support for Seychelles’ COVID-19 response through the donation of R1 million, primarily focused on supporting our frontline health workers. Now more than ever, we all need to apply our capabilities to the needs of nurses, doctors, midwives and community health workers. At this moment of crisis, no country can cope with what they need alone. The private sector needs to mobilise resources, alongside national governments, to fight the pandemic.”

Ambassador Lloyd noted that this gesture from Airtel is much appreciated. “This is an important partnership with Airtel Seychelles and demonstrates a real commitment to supporting our health workers who are battling day after day to defeat this pandemic. As individuals, members of the public should strictly follow the key hygiene measures and social distancing, to help flatten the curve of the epidemic, avoid overwhelming hospitals, and preserve access to healthcare.”

Ambassador Lloyd also noted that the Ministry of Health thanks all the donors that help them acquire masks and other special gears for fighting COVID-19.

Since the beginning of the pandemic in Seychelles, Airtel has provided other assistance to the Ministry of Health to ensure that the ministry has all the necessary tools to cope with the pandemic. This include three Home Broadband Devices with 100GB data allowance to Perseverance, Praslin centres and the Ministry of Health office from March 2020 to June 2020; 10 handsets with local call for the team at the Ministry of Health to trace potential suspected cases of COVID-19; Toll free line 141 which is run together with the Ministry of Health. Airtel subscribers can call for free to get prevention tips and information on COVID-19 and Customer Communication. Since April 1, Airtel has been sending out SMS broadcasts, revised its below-the-line (BTL) messages and it has been running a digital awareness campaign on its official social media platforms propagating information and prevention tips for the COVID-19.

In order to help mitigate the impact of social distancing for its customers, Airtel took several steps such as 15 GB free data allowance per month to all Home Broadband Customers from April 2020 to June 2020. Providing their customers more data to remain connected online; 100% Data bonus on Home Broadband Boasters purchased through www.airtel.sc/broadband

The additional data aims at assisting customers in conducting their businesses online and also entertaining themselves. And 100 SMS daily to all customers base from April 2020 to June 2020 to ensure that their customers stay connected with loved ones.

The telecommunication company also provided Zero charging access and browsing on certain health-related websites for: World Health Organisation (WHO), Seychelles Ministry of Health; free access to education sites, as it is committed to supporting our children in distance learning by identifying relevant education sites and offer access at Zero rate.

It also launched the Airtel Online payment platform and Airtel Care App to allow its customers to make payments for Airtel services, anytime and anywhere without the need to visit the company’s customer care centres, thereby limiting social interaction.