AU Commission Chairperson appeals to Member States for human resources to fight Ebola

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October 17, 2014

AU Commission Chairperson appeals to Member States for human resources to fight Ebola
Calls for immediate action to have adequate screening infrastructure at airports and rallies for media support to ongoing continental and global efforts.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia–17 October 2014: With reports that the turning point in the fight against Ebola has not yet been reached, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma on Thursday called for more continental solidarity to bring medical and public health officials to the affected countries. The African Union Commission, which has already called for emergency meetings of its executive and peace and security councils, has already deployed medical volunteers to two of the affected countries- 28 to Liberia and 21 to Sierra Leone under its African Union Support to Ebola Outbreak (Operation ASEOWA). The Commission is now putting together a team for Guinea Conakry.

‘The challenge with the Ebola response is mainly the need for infrastructure, including the need to establish treatment centres in all the three countries. During the United Nations General Assembly, the international community committed to take the lead on that front, with the United States commiting to lead efforts in Liberia, the British government in Sierra Leone and France in Guinea’, said Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, the African Union Commission Chairperson.

‘The second challenge is human resources. Not many countries have pledged human resources, and yet if the infrastructure is made available we will need people to work in these centres. We have to do more as a continent to mobilise human resources”, she added.

The Chairperson of the Commission is pressing Member States to second medical teams and has since written to African Heads of State and Government to request for human resources, noting that it is Africa’s responsibility to support affected countries. If governments second staff the costs of bringing medical personnel on the ground will be significantly lower. She also stressed the need to ensure that the private sector is on board to support with protective clothing, accommodation and subsistence.

The African Union Commission is currently engaged with individual Member States as part of its ongoing political advocacy efforts to remove air, maritime and border closures that are affecting humanitarian access, and have far reaching implications for the affected countries’ economies, that are still grappling with post conflict reconstruction.

Last week the Commissioner for Social Affairs, Dr. Mustapha Sidiki Kaloko led a delegation from the African Union to West Africa that visited Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea. The Commission is also having meetings with African airlines to make the necessary arrangements that will facilitate movement of people.

Some airlines are ready to fly as long as countries allow them to land. However most countries remain anxious and are concerned about the inadequate measures for screening at some airports. The African Union Commission and its international partners are lobbying African Union Member States to lift the bans and some of the measures include ensuring that the screening measures are strengthened. Some countries have relaxed the border restrictions and the African Union Commission continues to monitor the developments.

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About the African Union

The African Union spearheads Africa’s development and integration in close collaboration with African Union Member States, the Regional Economic Communities and African citizens. AU Vision:to accelerate progress towards an integrated, prosperous and inclusive Africa, at peacewith itself, playing a dynamic role in the continental and global arena, effectively driven by an accountable,efficient and responsive Commission. Learn more at: http://www.au.int/en/

Health, Humanitarian Affairs & Social Development (HHS)