TikTok donates $250m to coronavirus relief across the world

Fast-rising mobile app, TikTok, has announced the donation of $250 million to help in the global fight against the deadly coronavirus pandemic, according to reports.

TikTok, which is managed ByteDance - a Chinese tech firm said that “front line medical workers, educators, and local communities deeply affected by the global crisis” will be the beneficiaries of the relief fund.

This comes after a similar announcement was made by tech firms such as Google, Facebook and Netflix as well as from leaders of Microsoft, Amazon and Twitter.

“We are committed to playing our part in that global outpouring of mutual support and giving,” TikTok president Alex Zhu said in a statement.

“We want to magnify all we are seeing across our community and translate it into concrete relief for those most affected by this crisis.”

TikTok said $150 million of the funds would be allocated for medical staffing, supplies, and hardship relief for health care workers through the US Centers for Disease Control, World Health Organization, and agencies working to distribute supplies in hard-hit countries including India, Indonesia, Italy and South Korea.

Another $40 million will be donated to “organizations that serve groups representative of TikTok’s diverse user communities, including musicians, artists, nurses, educators, and families that have come together on our platform,” Zhu said.

TikTok said it would match $10 million in donations to its “community relief fund,” with some of that going to artists, songwriters, and music professionals hurt by cancelled performances and gig work.

Another $50 million will be applied to a “creative learning fund” to support distance learning efforts worldwide.

The deadly virus has affected more than a million people in the world with at least 93,637 persons worldwide, according to Worldometers.