07 Aug 2014

The SADC Ministers of Health’s Extra-Ordinary meeting that held in Johannesburg on August 6, has appealed to member states to accelerate the response in the event of an Ebola outbreak in the SADC region.

A communiqué from SADC states that the WHO International Health Regulations (2005) stresses the need for national coordination and leadership, and enhancement of cross-border collaboration and involvement of communities and active facilitation, in this case, by the SADC secretariat.

Thus the meeting reaffirmed the need for high-level national leadership by Heads of State and Government in order to facilitate multi-sectoral response interventions and coordination required to cope with the epidemic. The role of the WHO and SADC secretariat was considered essential to provide technical and facilitatory support.

The ministers resolved that in order to address the prevention and control of Ebola Virus Disease, member states should mobilise relevant government sectors and community, religious and political leaders to work together to increase awareness and understanding of the Ebola situation by communities in order to ensure optimum preparedness and response.

The ministers also resolved to identify and commit additional domestic financial resources to support the outbreak preparedness.

Other initiatives included to organise cross border consultations to facilitate exchange of information and agree on joint collaborative actions as well as to strengthen surveillance, case finding/detection, reporting and contact tracing and share information on EVD with WHO in a timely manner.

Member states resolved to continue to build and strengthen IHR core capacities especially those needed to respond to serious public health events and adhere to these regulations.

Member states will also improve community information and communication in matters related to the Ebola epidemic, respecting the different socio-cultural contexts, enhance awareness and promote community participation in preventive, curative and health promotion interventions.

They will also identify health facilities to be used during the outbreak and that have to be equipped with all appropriate equipment based on WHO guidelines.

SADC also drafted and approved minimum standard checklist that will be used as a regional guide on the management of Ebola Virus.

SADC’s regional response resolved that South Africa should be the centre of excellence in Ebola laboratory diagnosis in the region.

The SADC ministers meeting also resolved that WHO should provide leadership in the coordination of regional and country levels in providing support for national plans as well as to mobilise and deploy the required WHO staff and other experts, consultants, institutions and networks.

The emergency meeting also provided a forum for the region to share technical experiences on the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) so that the region remains vigilant and comes up with common understanding regarding the containment of the EVD in case of an outbreak; and to agree on a strategy for accelerated operational response. Ends