Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, on Wednesday, announced a 25-billion-euro (or 28.3-billion-dollar) funding package to help the country deal with the novel coronavirus.
Conte, however, said that the package amounted to financial availability, not to be used right away, but can be drawn to confront all the difficulties the country was facing due to the emergency.
The prime minister added that the coronavirus emergency in Italy, by far the worst so far in Europe, was both a health and an economic emergency, with clearly important social impact.
Economy Minister Roberto Gualtieri, said the first tranche of about 12 billion euros in funding would be detailed in a decree in no distance time.
“The rest was let’s say an allocation, a reserve for possible future interventions, potentially also on a European level.
“The new funding will go partly to supporting the health system, civil defence, and anti-infection measures.
“There will also be funding to protect employment and the cash flow of families and businesses, “Gualtieri said.
Gualtieri, however, promised that the government would do everything possible to make sure nobody loses his or her job because of the coronavirus. (dpa/NAN)
