Oshakati, 23 October 2006 -- The health authorities from Angola and Namibia have elaborated a joint plan of action to reactivate the prevention and control of the common communicable diseases and other issues along their borders, on specially Malaria, HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Polio, Epidemiological surveillance and social mobilization. This decision has been taken at the end of a meeting held in Oshakati, Namibia, from 17th to 19th October 2006.

The plan was co-sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO), with the contribution of UNICEF, UNDP and UNAIDS. This is the third meeting involving experts from the two neighboring countries to discuss common cross border health issues. The first meeting took place in November 2001, when a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Minister of Health of Namibia and the Ambassador of Angola. The next meeting will be held in November 2007, in Ondjiva, the capital of the Angolan province of Cunene.

According to the eleven recommendations announced at the closing session, Angola and Namibia decided to develop joint key interventions, such as to synchronize National Immunization Days (NIDS) against polio; to expand and to synchronize activities for indoor residual spraying to prevent malaria; to increase the coverage of drugs for the treatment of TB, AIDS and Malaria; to harmonize protocols for treatment of the current diseases along the common border; to conduct studies on main communicable diseases and to produce health education materials to be used in the common border.

The eleven recommendations, as well as an Oshakati Declaration, have been approved in the presence of the Minister of Health of Angola, Dr. Sebastião Veloso, the Representative of the Minister of Health and Social Affairs from Namibia, Dr. N. Hamata, health programmes managers from both countries and UN representatives and experts from Angola and Namibia.

According to the approved chronogram, the agreed activities will be implemented until November 2007. Angola and Namibia also decided to set up mechanisms at national, provincial and municipal level to follow up and monitor the level of implementation of these activities, on annual, semester quarterly basis.

Both sides still recommended the regular exchange of information on health programmes, as well as to monitor the epidemiological surveillance and operational research on communicable diseases and on other priority health issues.

The two countries also committed themselves to organize a communication system at the border level and to assess health units, human resources and technical equipments along the common border in order to ensure a prompt assistance to the patients who need treatments.

Malaria, the co-infection between TB and HIV/AIDS and the importation of the wild polio virus are the main public health issues that the two countries are facing in the last years, as stated by Dr. Custodia Mandlhate, the WHO Representative in Namibia. With around three million cases and more than 20 thousand of hospital deaths per year, Malaria is not only endemic country wide in Angola, but also the main cause of mortality and morbidity.

In Namibia, around 65% of the population lives in malaria endemic areas at the north, mainly in Kavango, Ohangwena and Caprivi, near the Angolan border. With only 2,2 million inhabitants, Namibia is among the most affected HIV/Aids countries at the sub-Saharan region, with a total of 230,000 people living with HIV/AIDS (19,7% of prevalence). Although the country has a very low HIV prevalence rate (only 2,8% among pregnant women), the health authorities in Angola are worried about the growing cases in the bordering province of Cunene where the prevalence rate increased from 9% to 11%, in the last two years.

Concerning the polio status, in 2005 and 2006 Angola notified a total of 11 confirmed wild polio cases, after reporting zero cases since September of 2001. In 2006, Namibia, after 10 years polio free, reported wild polio cases among in adults, in the bordering regions of Omusati and Ohangwena.

Speaking on behalf of the UN Agencies, Dr. Custodia Mandlhate promised to intensify efforts to support and to revitalize the dialogue and the cross border collaboration between Angola and Namibia, to solve these problems. "We are the same people, with share the same concerns and we have the same dreams which are to achieve a good health and a good quality of life for all our people”, she highlighted.

In her remarks, the WHO Representative in Angola, Dr. Fatoumata Diallo, also underlined that the Oshakati Declaration is an important milestone to revitalize the health dialogue between both countries. "Our challenges now are the timely implementation of our common work plans and to ensure an impact in the reduction of mortality and the morbidity due to communicable diseases along the border. We can not let these expectations die again", she said.

The Angolan Minister of Health, Dr. Sebastião Veloso, who traveled with his deputy Minister for Public health, reaffirmed the full commitment of the Angolan government in the implementation of these recommendations, and the Oshakati Declaration as well, regarding in special the control of HIV/AIDS and malaria and the synchronization of NIDS to stop the transmission of polio virus.

In his closing remarks, the Representative of the Minister of Health of Namibia, Dr. N. Hamata, stated that “viruses and other germs don’t know international borders, travel very easily and in order to fight communicable diseases, a joint effort is required from all of us”.

Dr. N. Hamata also called attention for those Angolan patients who often came to Namibia to be treated but have no ways to pay for medical services. “Quite often we receive patients, but sometimes expensive heart operations are not done because there is nobody to pay”, he urged.

The meeting had the participation of health programme managers and experts from EPI, HIV/AIDS, Malaria, TB, Epidemiological Surveillance and Social Mobilization, as well as the UN Agencies in Angola and Namibia, including the Angolan Vice-minister of Health, Dr. Jose Van-Dúnem, the National Director of Public Health from Angola, Dr. Adelaide de Carvalho, the Directors of the Ohangwena and Omusati regions in Namibia, Mr. E. Amundaba and Mr.Tappopi respectively .

For further information please contact

WHO Office in Luanda, Angola, at Rua Major Kahangulo 197, 7 andar, or telephone: (244) 222 395 701

Fax: (244) 222 332314

E-Mail: wr [at] ao.afro.who.int