Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Social Justice – in the Senedd at 1:46 pm on 6 July 2022.
I presume and I hope that you've met with the Wales and Africa Health Links Network, which is a very dynamic organisation led principally by people in the Welsh NHS. It's one of the most important networks that has been developed within the NHS, so that you have partnerships between health boards, between hospitals, between communities in Wales and Africa. I hope, if you haven't met them, that you will be meeting them, because they come under the umbrella of Hub Cymru Africa.
It is important that we are relaunching our international learning opportunities programme. That was relaunched in April after two years of not being able to send people on placements due to COVID. It's a really important way in which people in Wales can actually contribute to UN sustainable development goals, by having a placement of up to eight weeks in either Lesotho, Namibia or Uganda. That's funded by the Wales and Africa programme. These exchanges are also taking place with NHS workers. Actually, we've enabled people in the NHS to have time off in order to undertake this kind of experience.
In terms of outcomes, the money that we made available, £3.1 million since March 2020, looking at response and adaptations to the pandemic, is helping children get back to school, providing clean water and soap stations and essential PPE, raising awareness about the impact of COVID-19, dispelling fake information, stressing the importance of receiving vaccinations, helping people get digital access and assistance in areas that could not previously provide it. That is the outcome of our investment in Africa.