The East African Community Regional High Level Multi-sectoral Ministerial Meeting for Ministers Responsible for
Health, Transport, East African Affairs and Immigration
17 September 2014
- Your Excellency James Macharia – Cabinet Secretary of Health
- Your Excellency Dr Richard Sezibera – Secretary General of the East African Community
- Excellencies, the Ministers,
- Distinguished Guests
- Ladies and gentlemen
I would like to thank the East African Community for the opportunity given to the World Health Organization to contribute to this high level meeting on Emergency Preparedness and Response to Ebola Virus Disease Outbreak. To the Hounorable Cabinet Secretary for Health in Kenya, I want to address my appreciation for hosting this important event and gratitude for your hospitality.
The Ebola virus disease is currently affecting six African countries namely Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The current epidemic in West Africa is unique, on-going over the past 9 months, and unpredictable. It is characterized by intense transmission within affected areas and increasing number of cases and deaths. It has affected close to 5000 persons and claimed over 2500 lives, including 152 among health care workers.
This is the worst ever reported Ebola epidemic affecting simultaneously 5 countries and threatening regional and global health security. Its high potential for international spread is raising political, economic and social concerns within the United Nations, Bilateral and multilateral agencies, the African Union, Regional Economic Communities and African Governments.
- Your Excellencies
- Distinguished Ladies and gentlemen
Several factors have contributed to the spread of the outbreak and these include the weak health systems, negative traditional beliefs and practices, intense movement of infected people within countries and across borders. Moreover, we are facing a disease for which we have neither medicine nor vaccine. Furthermore the weak health infrastructure capacity at local level hampers the ability of Governments and communities to cope with the complexity and severity of the outbreak.
The Ebola outbreak has also brought challenges in travel, trade and support to affected countries. We have seen over the last few months increasing number of countries imposing travel restrictions on citizens from affected countries. Some Governments have decided to close borders and a number of airlines have suspended flights to and from the affected countries. These measures are compromising the deployment of international staff and supplies that are required to tackle the outbreak. They are not consistent with the recommendations of the International Health Regulations - Emergency Committee on Ebola outbreak. The World Health Organization recommends: “There should be no general ban on international travel or trade.” This position was reiterated jointly by WHO and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the SADC Ministers of Health, the ECOWAS Ministers of Health and more recently by the Executive Council of the African Union.
- Your Excellencies.
- Distinguished Ladies and gentlemen:
To prevent the international spread of Ebola infection, WHO has advised affected countries to conduct exit screening of all persons at international airports, seaports and major land crossings, to detect and manage any suspected case of Ebola. Any person with an illness consistent with Ebola should not be allowed to travel unless the travel is part of an appropriate medical evacuation.
We also advised all countries to be prepared to detect, investigate and manage travellers coming from countries affected by Ebola who arrive at international airports or major land crossing points with unexplained febrile illness consistent with EVD.
These are recommendations of the International Health Regulations –Emergency Committee that should help Governments to identify and apply relevant measures.
- Your Excellencies
- Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen:
I would like to remind that in 2005 at the World Health Assembly, your countries adopted the International Health Regulations. These regulations require that Member States strengthen their core capacities for the detection of and response to public health events.
Unfortunately, as of today, we are still far from attaining these capacities. The core capacities include among others the following: national policy and legislation, diseases surveillance, preparedness, response, risk communication, human resources and laboratory. I would like to call upon all East African Community countries to take a collective approach for accelerating the attainment of the IHR core capacities. This is the only way we could envision a future where we would be able to early detect and timely manage any public health event.
- Honourable Ministers,
- Distinguished participants:
Based on WHO assessment of the level of preparedness of countries to respond to EVD outbreak; I would like to urge countries in the East Africa to update and fund the implementation of their national preparedness plans in accordance with the guidelines already provided by WHO. Please be reminded that it is important to involve different government sectors to ensure the required core competencies within a national inter-sectoral coordination mechanism.
Despite the lack of medicines and vaccine, it is possible to control the current EVD Epidemic. With the existing knowledge, on-going research and the increasing international solidarity, I am confident that we will overcome this public health threat and restore serenity to focus on Africa’s health development agenda.
WHO is involved within a broader United Nations undertaking to establish a global platform, which is expected to strengthen the country capacities in addressing the different dimensions of the EVD outbreak.
Allow me to conclude by reminding the East African Community that epidemics can be prevented and better managed if you meet the core capacities of the International Health Regulations.
I thank you very much for your attention.