AfricaPress-Tanzania: After staff at the international airports and border posts, the East African Community (EAC) has started training workers at the ports on Covid-19 preparedness.
The first of four such training stints on response measures to the pandemic started at the Kenyan port of Mombasa early this week.
Training is organized by the EAC Secretariat in collaboration with the Nairobi-based Amref Flying Doctors in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO).
“They aim to build the knowledge of staff on safety measures, surveillance, prevention and control strategies on Covid-19,” said the EAC deputy secretary general Christophe Bazivamo.
He said the flying doctor service will offer a comprehensive training of trainers to enable the ports to develop their own staff training and surveillance regimes.
“This will contribute greatly towards the pillar of enhanced safety for travellers,” said Stephen Gitau, AFD chief executive officer.
The training will involve a wide range of staff with close contact with passengers such as port medical service providers.
Others are ship operators, selected crew members,staff at Immigration and customs and cargo and baggage handlers, among others.
The trainees will identify and demarcate the port zones for isolation and quarantine of passengers and decontamination of ships and harbour areas.
A total of 80 key port personnel in all four harbours within the region will be trained and are expected to spearhead surveillance at the ports.
Mr Gitau said the training curriculum is based on the International Health Regulations and best practices of the WHO. According to the EAC Secretariat, four other ports where the training will take place are Dar es Salaam and Zanzibar, Bujumbura and Kisumu.
The training, to continue until next month, is facilitated by the German government through its international cooperation agency, GIZ.It is part of an effort to support the EAC partner states in their response to Covid-19 through the pandemic preparedness.
