Author: EDWARD QORRO
AfricaPress-Tanzania: THE East African Community (EAC) is now banking on its staff stationed at One Stop Border Post (OSBP) to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in the region.
This comes as some partner states have started opening their borders and spaces to allow the movement of travellers in the region.
“To minimise health risks, the EAC will conduct training of trainers at 12 OSBPs in the region to build staff capacity for infection prevention and for communicating Covid risks to travellers,” said Productive and Social Sectors Deputy Secretary- General Christophe Bazivamo.
According to Mr Bazivamo, the EAC Secretariat with support from the German Government through the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH has already engaged Amref Flying Doctors (AFD) to conduct emergency intervention training for about 330 members of staff at 12 OSBPs in the region, covering all partner states.
Among other things, this training aims at enhancing surveillance, prevention of and response to the spread of Covid-19 in and out of the partner states.
Target groups for training of trainers are border post stakeholders with close contact to travellers and their luggage, as well as to animals and goods.
The EAC deputy secretarygeneral was of the view that the border post staff had the capacity to prevent the spread of the novel virus and to quickly and expertly respond to infections in people who cross the border determines the efficiency.
Human mobility across borders has exacerbated the spread of Covid-19 within the EAC region and beyond.
It is hence pertinent and a matter of urgency that in addition to the measures already established, all members of staff of various sectors at the border posts are trained in the prevention of Covid-19.
