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Published Monday, March 1, 2021
U.S. donates sinks to schools
valued at $150,000
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The United States government, through the Humanitarian Assistance Bureau of the United States Agency for International Development, USAID, donated 520 sinks to 81 schools located in Alajuela Province.
According to the United States Embassy, more than 26,000 students benefit from this donation of stainless sinks valued at $150,000.
“The United States and Costa Rica will continue to work together to overcome threats to the safety of our citizens," Gloria Berbena, the U.S. Embassy Chargé d'Affaires said. "The return to face-to-face learning leads us to find ways to keep our communities safe, healthy and prosperous."
This contribution is part of a two million dollar donation by the United States government, the embassy said in its statement.
This is the second donation made by USAID to students in a week.
On Monday, USAID, in alliance with the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund, UNICEF donated sanitizing supplies valued at $1,179,913, to be distributed to 642 schools in Costa Rica.
According to the Ministry of Education, the schools chosen to get the cleaning supplies are located in the areas with the highest spread rate of covid-19.
The donation included 37,957 gallons of liquid sanitizer; 30,375 gallons of liquid soap; 15,497 gallons of alcohol gel; 8,529 digital thermometers; and 5,000 alcohol gel dispensers.
Among the 642 schools, there are 205 schools for special skills students, 119 for students in refugee status, 16 schools in indigenous zones and 73 schools with high levels of student exclusion.
USAID, UNICEF, and the Ministry are sponsoring an advertising campaign called "Yo Me Cuido" (or "I take care of myself" in the English language)for promoting the sanitary guidelines in schools, which has been advertised in Spanish media since Jan. 8.
According to the ministry statistics, since the beginning of in-person lessons, more than 80 schools have been confirmed positive with covid-19 cases. Those infected are students, teachers and administration staff.
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