Skip to main content

ECOWAS health ministers issue joint coronavirus preparedness plan



Health ministers from member countries of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have issued joint regional preparedness strategies for the prevention, early detection and control of the coronavirus outbreak.
A communiqué issued at the end of the one-day meeting of ECOWAS health ministers, organised by the West African Health Organisation (WAHO), charged member countries to implement robust measures to assure availability of critical medical supplies, including laboratory materials and personal protective equipment in the region.
The meeting at Bamako, the capital of Mali, last Friday was aimed to “promote a joint initiative to prevent the introduction of the disease through the establishment of different mechanisms, strategies and raising awareness at the national and sub-regional level on how to deal with this scourge.”
The communiqué, dated February 14, 2020, called for enhanced surveillance and management measures for Covid-19, particularly at entry points – air, land and sea.
It also called for strengthened co-ordination, communication and collaboration amongst member states in preparedness for Covid-19 epidemic, including cross-border collaboration.
The Health Minister emphasised the need to step up communication to ensure that the public receives accurate, appropriate and timely information regarding the epidemic.
“Urgently strengthen critical national capacities for diagnosing and managing cases. Develop a strategic costed regional preparedness plan based on member states’ priorities for governments, partners, and the private sector to support,” it added.
The communiqué called on countries to promote multi-sectoral national efforts using one-health approach to maximise impact.
ECOWAS countries were urged to work closely with the relevant authorities of national governments and the Chinese government to monitor and assure the health situation of our citizens resident in China.
Addressing the meeting earlier, Director of WAHO, Prof Stanley Okolo announced that all suspected cases of coronavirus reported in Burkina Faso, Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea and Nigeria so far were confirmed to be negative after isolation, surveillance and comprehensive tests.
He listed the actions taken by his organisation, including the creation of ECOWAS’ Regional Centre for Disease Surveillance and Control, the establishment of national public health institutions in all member states, internationally agreed best practices at the regional level, as well as the strengthening of regional reference laboratories, networked to cover the region’s biological diagnostic needs and the creation and regular upgrading of a team for regional response to epidemics.
Malian Prime Minister Boubou Cissé said the recent health crisis in West Africa caused by the Ebola virus disease has caused about 28,000 cases with 11,000 deaths.
“In Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Senegal and Mali, this epidemic has not only demonstrated the limitations of our surveillance systems, but has also highlighted the need for collaboration between our countries in managing health problems,” he said.
He noted that the pooling of multi-sector and multidisciplinary experience appears to be an imperative for improving the health and safety of populations because, “they will undoubtedly enable the establishment of cross-border mechanisms for the benefit of our people”.
China’s ambassador to Mali, Zhu Liying said “when the Chinese government became aware of the seriousness of the problem, it took extraordinary measures.
“For example, he said, “it closed the city of Wuhan with its 12 million population, and Hubei province with 60 million people. It built two specialized hospitals with a total capacity of 2,500 beds in record time”.
The Malian Minister of Health and Social Affairs, Michel Sidibé, said ECOWAS, which has about 380 million people, does not even have three laboratories that can take care of patients effectively if there are such cases.
The Minister said the meeting had been successful and countries have resolved to co-operate to combat the virus.
“Today, we are leaving here really satisfied because we are going to develop plans, of course, national responses that already exist in several cases; we are going to try to consolidate them into plans that would really enable us to have a coherent approach that could be financed at the regional level.”
Source: universnewsroom.com.   Tags: Coronaviruse , ECOWAS

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Food Poisoning in Ghana: A system failure?

Restaurant managers, owners, food vendors and all those who matter in the food supply chain must take into account a number of important factors to maintain the safety of their consumers, including food and environmental safety management. In Ghana, there are said to be more than 625,000 cases of food poisoning annually, according to a report released by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture and the World Bank in 2007. Over 420,000 cases of foodborne illness are reported annually in Ghana, where one in every 40 persons is affected. For instance, in the East Legon outlet of the fast food restaurant Marwako, a food vending establishment, it was claimed that over 50 people contracted food poisoning in May 2022. The Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) is a Ghanaian government organization in charge of overseeing the correct distribution of drugs, food, and food products in Ghana. The Food and Drugs Law of 1992, PNDC Law 305B, created the board. More than 297,104 patients were admitted to h...
RAMADAN FAREWELL MESSAGE FROM THE CEO OF GLOBAL MUSLIMAH YOUTH ORGANIZATION Taiba Deishinah Shaibu Taiba Deishinah Shaibu Respected brothers and sisters in Islam, I greet you all with the best of greetings and the greetings of (Al Jannah) heaven assalamu alaikum warahmatullah wabarakatuhu. Just some few weeks ago, Allah favored us among those who witnessed this blessed month of Ramadan and the least we can say is Alhamdulillahi, because there were others who were in full anticipation with us for this holy month but we fail to count them amongst the living. With this big favor alone from our Lord and the Lord of the world we praise Him. Subhaanallah! Even though this blessed month was observed amidst the severe pandemic of our generation; Covid 19 but Muslims around the globe never gave it up maa shaa Allah. May Allah safeguard us from this deadly disease. Several mysterious things occurred, and among them are, Mosques closed for the first time in our history, visiti...
IN A POLITICAL SPHERE FULL OF UNCERTAINTIES: THE ONLY SURE THING IS “ONLY GOD CAN JUDGE INTENTIONS...By  YAKUBU HUSEIN PUMAYA YAKUBU HUSEIN PUMAYA As a fresher, I got attracted to any aspirant who was bold enough to speak to me. In my mind, the best form of bravery was the ability to speak to strangers; that was what I considered to be the hallmark of a true leader. If more than one aspirant spoke to me, I considered the one who was more fluent to be the best candidate. In effect, my opinion of whom a good leader is, was based on his/her ability to speak good English.  When I was a fresher, I remember telling one of my seniors that I thought a particular candidate was going to win. He asked me why, and I answered proudly, “because he was the first to come to my class and he spoke perfect English”. He laughed at me and said, “Small boys are young”.  After 3 years on campus, it has become clear that I was indeed small and young. I have learnt that ...