By Francis Otucu

Vivo Energy Uganda, the distributor and marketer of Shell branded fuels and lubricants in Uganda, has Monday contributed 50 Million Uganda shillings worth of fuel (about 13,000 litres) to support the mobility of the Ministry of Health Emergency teams countrywide in a bid to further mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 global pandemic.

In addition, the company has donated hand sanitizers, masks, liquid soaps and other hygiene solutions as precautionary measure against coronavirus worth over 10 million Uganda shillings. The total support to the Ministry of Health therefore amounts to 60 million Uganda shillings.

“Our commitment to achieving and maintaining the highest international safety standards is a key differentiator for Vivo Energy Uganda. This is evidenced by our prioritization of Goal Zero, which means zero harm to people, assets and the environment in all our operations. As a company that believes in safety, we view this as an obligation and duty to our citizenry to support the Government of Uganda to deal with this exceptional health crisis,” Vivo Energy Uganda Managing Director, Gilbert Assi said.

He assured the nation of reliability and quality during this period.

“We further reiterate our commitment to reliably delivering the very best of high quality Shell products our customers – with full utilisation of all our facilities, including our recently expanded inland storage capacity, in order to avoid supply shortages especially during this period,’’ he added.

Dr. Diana Atwine, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Health thanked Vivo Energy Uganda for its kind gesture and solidarity.

“Your support will help the government in fighting the pandemic and enhance the ministry’s COVID-19 response. We believe that with the combined effort and support of like-minded companies and individuals, our efforts to stem the spread of the deadly virus and save the lives of our citizens shall be greatly boosted,” she concluded.

The Covid 19 pandemic, has continued to impact countries globally in various proportions. Uganda in particular has registered 33 cases positive of the virus while over 1,001 are under follow up.