Honourable Minister of Health of the Republic of South Africa,
Representatives from Member States,
Distinguished representatives of bilateral and multilateral agencies, and technical partners,
Representatives of global, regional and national organizations,
Dear colleagues,
Ladies and gentlemen,
It is my pleasure to address you today as you gather to establish a common framework of action to support in a coordinated way the countries in Africa and other regions to ensure that they have in place sustained preparedness to face health security risks.
I am glad that the meeting will build on the achievements made in our collective response to the Ebola epidemic and be guided by the lessons we have learnt. In today’s interconnected world, and considering recent trends in the frequency and magnitude of public health events and crises, we need to pay a lot more attention to health security. We have no margin for error and we have no time to waste.
The Ebola virus disease epidemic in West Africa has reminded us vividly that many countries do not have robust health systems and IHR core capacities to effectively respond if confronted by serious health threats. Unfortunately it is certain that serious health threats will continue to occur in the future. What we do not know for certain is when and where they will occur. And that is why we must be fully prepared now and at all times.
Strengthening health security and our ability to manage emergencies will not only reduce morbidity, disability and mortality but also reduce the social and economic impacts resulting from these health events and threats. We all have a shared responsibility to make our contribution.
Ladies and gentlemen,
This High-Level Partners Meeting brings together the key national, regional and international stakeholders needed to establish a common framework of action.
Success in establishing this framework and intensifying and improving the current capacity-strengthening activities will depend on all of us. In the countries we need to work together towards common goals in a complementary and harmonized manner, under one well considered national plan for preparedness and response.
This approach seeks to avoid parallel and fragmented planning and implementation at the country level and unifies the essential requirements of IHR capacities and health systems necessary to effectively address public health risks in a single integrated framework for action.
WHO proposes that the initial phase of intensified preparedness focus on ensuring that all countries in Africa have, at least, the following capacities firmly in place on a functional and sustainable basis:
- A surveillance system that will cover the country from community to national levels and be adapted to relevant situations, and which will use well-trained staff and proven information management systems;
- A central national emergency operation centre with capacities and resources to function as a central hub for national surveillance at all times, and as the central operational hub to be activated during health emergencies;
- Sustainable community engagement and risk communication strategies and resourced plans; and
- Critical laboratory diagnostic capacities with associated quality assessment processes.
These capacities should be part of a national strategic plan for health with an evidence-based monitoring and review framework. Significant efforts would need to be made to ensure that these linked capacities are firmly in place over time in all countries in Africa and in other regions.
One key outcome of this meeting is the development of a road map. It is expected that the roadmap will summarize the processes, actions and key steps that are needed to move from the current situation to an Africa-wide and then global initiative to strengthen health security capacities. It is my expectation that this will be followed by clear commitments from stakeholders to provide the essential support needed for implementing the road map. It is also important we have a robust system for monitoring progress and evaluating the outcomes of the road map.
Distinguished representatives and colleagues,
I am confident that the next three days will move us towards stronger health security preparedness in Africa and beyond.
I wish you all a very successful meeting and commit to working with you in implementing the road map.