The World Health Organization (WHO) has signed an agreement with the Norwegian Government for the release of 6,200,000 Norwegian Kroner (approximately 1,000,000.00 USD) to support WHO’s Action Plan for Ebola Outbreak Preparedness in Ghana.
Under the terms of the agreement, the Norwegian government will release the funds to WHO as a donation towards augmenting its efforts in Ebola preparedness activities in Ghana.
The implementation of activities is expected to commence in September 2014 and last for a period of one year, ending in September2015.
In a statement at the signing ceremony in Accra, yesterday, the WHO Country Representative to Ghana, Dr. Magda Robalo, recalled that WHO declared the Ebola outbreak as a public health event of international concern which threatened global security.
Mrs Robalo said since WHO was notified of an outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) in Ghana, the outbreak had since evolved into the largest, most severe and most complex outbreak in the history of the disease.
The Country Representative noted that the three most affected countries- Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone faced enormous challenges in stopping transmission and providing care for all patients.
She said WHO was conducting a systematic risk assessment to identify preparedness needs in non-affected countries as well as enhancing their capacity to effectively respond to an eventual imported case.
Mrs Robalo noted that since EVD had been declared as a public health event of international concern, Ghana stood the chance of having an imported case.
She expressed WHO’s gratitude to the Norwegian government for the support towards the fight against Ebola, especially with a focus on the preparedness activities in Ghana and gave the assurance that the funds would be used for critical activities in line with the Ghana’s Preparedness Plan to Prevent an Ebola Outbreak and the WHO Ebola Response Roadmap.
In a statement, Her Excellency the Norwegian Ambassador to Ghana, Ms Hege Hertzberg, pledged the commitment of her government to support Ghana in its preparedness efforts.
Ms Hertzberg applauded WHO’s co-ordinating role in the response to the outbreak and hightlighted the importance of partnership in tackling health emergencies such as this, which, she said, had the potential to jeopardize important development gains.
Source: ISD (Tally Ansah Asiedu)
