Africa-Press. Health ministers from the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa held an emergency consultative meeting to discuss necessary measures to address the risk of Ebola virus spread in the region, amid an outbreak in the Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
The meeting took place amid growing concerns about the potential transmission of the virus to neighboring countries, despite no reported infections within member states so far. The ministers issued a joint statement announcing a series of precautionary measures, including mobilizing financial resources and establishing a collective emergency fund dedicated to implementing health response plans and purchasing medicines and medical supplies in the event of disease outbreaks.
Although the Ebola outbreak remains distant from the borders of the community, regional health authorities emphasized the importance of early preparedness and strengthening prevention mechanisms.
The Commissioner for Education, Research, and Social Development in the community, Folgens Likasi Bokamba, stated that the measures taken include enhancing contact tracing capabilities and managing suspected and confirmed cases to ensure the protection of the region’s population from any potential outbreak.
Member states also decided to tighten health surveillance at border crossings by mandating the use of hand sanitizers and conducting mandatory temperature checks for travelers entering the community’s countries, as part of a package of preventive measures aimed at reducing the risk of virus transmission across borders.
The value of the new emergency fund has not been disclosed by the community, but it confirmed ongoing coordination between national and regional health agencies to monitor the epidemiological situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. It is worth noting that the last Ebola outbreak in the Republic of the Congo was recorded in 2005.
