Nepal will get $75 million funding from the World Bank to access the safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines for prioritized groups of the country. Both the World Bank and the Nepali government, on Friday have signed an agreement, according to a report in the Himalayan Times. 

This new agreement came after the World Bank had earlier provided $29 million to Nepal for the COVID-19 Emergency Response and Health Systems Preparedness Project that was signed in April 2020.

“It (the agreement) supports the government's health response to the pandemic, by supporting the procurement of COVID-19 vaccines as well as strengthening health systems for their effective deployment as per the National Deployment and Vaccination Plan," Nepal’s Finance Secretary Sishir Kumar Dhungana was quoted as saying by the Himalayan Times. 

He also informed that 90 percent of the new funding will be utilized for the procurement of vaccines, and the rest will support the existing health infrastructure. 

The World Bank has been providing funding to developing countries, including the $12 billion to help low- and middle-income countries purchase and distribute COVID-19 vaccines, conduct tests, provide treatment, and strengthen vaccination systems.