Employees of Israel’s Sonovia Ltd, makers of washable and reusable antiviral masks, which the company says can help stop the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), work at their laboratory in Ramat Gan, Israel May 17, 2020. Photo: REUTERS/Amir Cohen.

JNS.org – In the backdrop of expanding Israel-Africa relations in recent years, Israeli organizations and start-ups are working to help countries on the African continent fight the coronavirus.

Magen David Adom (MDA), Israel’s national ambulance service, recently built dedicated software for managing a drive-through coronavirus testing facility in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DR Congo).

MDA’s drive-through centers, which have been operating since the beginning of the spread of the coronavirus in Israel, have received more than 120,000 Israelis. They have also sparked interest from the DR Congo’s Honorary Consul in Israel, resulting in a similar center throughout the central African country, as well as a training program with videos and written procedures that has been passed from MDA to medical professionals who operate the facility in the DR Congo.

MDA chief of information officer Ido Rosenblat said, “From the moment they contacted us, we were ready to help at [a] difficult time to set up the ‘Drive Thru’ sampling facilities in DR Congo, and to share our knowledge.”

According to director general Eli Bin, MDA’s medical capabilities, technologies, and methods are among the most advanced in the world. “In the light of the fight against coronavirus, we have gained extensive experience in obtaining thousands of samples a day, most efficiently and safely, and now we are happy to share knowledge with other medical entities around the world for the sake of saving human lives.”

To date, the DR Congo has 4,778 known cases of coronavirus, with 107 deaths and 600 recovered patients. With cases spreading quickly, the test centers will be vital in order to confirm cases and prevent further spread of the virus.

After teaching the DR Congo over Zoom how to set up the system, the country now has four permanent and 90-plus mobile testing sites using MDA’s software that can manage data, including a complex bar-code system, and extract the data to map those infected with COVID-19. It also has an interface for the labs, and the software allows users to book appointments for the drive-through, as well as fill out an epidemiology questionnaire.

MDA official Uriel Goldberg noted that MDA has made it its role as Israel’s Red Cross National Society to assist numerous countries around the world. “Israel has very innovative and practical tech and medical solutions for a variety of issues, including coronavirus. MDA is committed to helping African and developing countries.”

Even before the novel virus, he said, MDA helped the Kenya Red Cross set up an ambulance service, write protocols, and train paramedics who came to Israel for eight months of training.

The organization has also been known to send personnel and disaster relief, most recently to Haiti, Turkey, Egypt, and Nepal. “MDA receives requests for help and advice all of the time; we are always prepared to help and advise any country that requests it,” Goldberg said. “We feel that it is our duty for us to help save lives wherever and however we can.”

Jerusalem-based Start-Up Nation Central similarly assists Israeli companies that want to penetrate into African markets with the goal of strengthening their ecosystems. Vered Mivtzari, Start-Up Nation Central’s strategic countries’ director of Africa and India, helps match African challenges with Israeli technology solutions.

“COVID-19 brought with it even more local needs in Africa, and African countries needed much help in dealing with food delivery, medical care and response, and providing basic needs to vulnerable populations such as refugees and the elderly while maintaining social distancing and high standards of hygiene,” she said.

“Several Israeli tech companies went above and beyond … offering their technologies in open source to different countries around the world, including in Africa,” she continued. Such technologies include AmboVent, an emergency ventilation device; Growponics, a manual respiratory balloon tech; and Diagnostic Robotics, an AI diagnostic system for health care insurers, providers, and patients that helps authorities locate potential COVID-19 patients.

Israel’s export of technology to Africa occurs in a context of increased relations in recent years, with Israel now having diplomatic relations with 41 out of 44 Sub-Saharan African states, including a number of Muslim-majority states.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made several visits to Africa in recent years, most recently to Uganda in February 2020. Jerusalem has hosted presidents and prime ministers in recent years from Chad, Liberia, Guinea, Senegal, Togo, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Kenya, Zambia, Sierra Leone, and Swaziland.

As Netanyahu said in 2016 after stepping off the plane in Entebbe, Uganda 40 years after his older brother, Yoni Netanyahu, was killed in the Israeli military rescue operation that saved the lives of 102 airline passengers hijacked and held at the Entebbe airport by Palestinian and German terrorists, “Israel is coming back to Africa, and Africa is coming back to Israel.”

According to Tel Aviv University’s Institute for National Security Studies (INSS), “in formulating ties with Africa, Israel has largely been motivated by altruism; the drive to circumvent boycotts that were designed to isolate it; efforts to combat external and internal threats to security; construction and consolidation of alliances that reinforce ideals and values; and the attempt to enhance its position as an important actor in the international system.”

Additionally, said INSS, “Israel’s African allies have sought to consolidate their cultural connections with the Jewish state and harness Israel’s technical expertise in the spheres of development and security.”

During the time of the coronavirus, Israel has certainly heeded the advice of INSS: “To further strengthen these relations, Israel should focus on technical development assistance. The soft-power approach to bilateral relations is the key to winning the hearts and minds of Africa.”

Eliana Rudee is a contributor to the Franklin Center for Government & Public Integrity. She is a graduate of Scripps College, where she studied International Relations and Jewish Studies. Follow her @ellierudee.