Health - Sierra Leone

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND—

The World Health Organization’s Regional Director for Africa says West Africa is better prepared to tackle future outbreaks of Ebola. In an exclusive interview with VOA, Matshidiso Moeti says Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea are now able to respond more quickly to emergencies because of upgrades to their surveillance, laboratory and health care systems.

ISE-SHIMA (Japan), (Sputnik) – The recent Ebola outbreak claimed the lives of over 11,000 people, according to WHO estimates.

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has warned that Ebola virus flare-ups would happen in 2016 despite the fact that all known chains of Ebola transmission had been stopped in West Africa.

The Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak in West Africa was the largest global public health crisis in recent history, with over 8,000 cases confirmed in Sierra Leone alone. EVD had a devastating impact on individuals, families and communities, claiming the lives of almost 4,000 people and causing widespread socio-economic disruption.

In order to contribute toward preventing future outbreaks and to strengthen the ability of Sierra Leone to effectively respond to crises, WFP is supporting national disaster management authorities to develop their capabilities in emergency preparedness and response.

GENEVA—

The World Health Assembly has approved reforms that will increase the U.N. health agency's ability to respond rapidly and more effectively to health emergencies. In Geneva, a panel of experts discussed how new measures will help countries tackle emergencies, such as Ebola, Zika, and yellow fever.

Material to prevent Zika infection by mosquitoes are displayed at the 69th World Health Assembly at the United Nations European headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, May 23, 2016