As Liberia stands to be declared Ebola-free on May 9, if no new cases are reported, the Africa Regional Director of the World Health Organization (WHO), Dr. Matshidiso R. Moeti, assured that WHO will continue to work with Liberia in making ensuring the Ebola virus does not return through its borders.
According to a Ministry of Foreign Affairs release, Dr. Moeti said this will be done by ensuring secure borders screening and collaboration by neighboring States. She attributed Liberia’s success in the ongoing Ebola fight to “an excellent and strong partnership between the people and government.”
Dr. Moeti said the strong reaction shown by the ordinary people in the face of the epidemic and the actions taken by the political leadership have been “exemplary and a model” for other countries to follow in future outbreaks. Speaking earlier at the press stake-out, Foreign Minister Augustine Kpehe Ngafuan thanked Dr. Moeti for the high-level solidarity visit to Liberia to assess the impact of the WHO contributions to the fight against the Ebola Virus that has taken a huge toll on the lives of citizens of Liberia and other countries of the Mano River basin.
Minister Ngafuan also congratulated Dr. Moeti, a native of the sisterly Republic of Botswana, on her election in November 2014 as WHO’s first woman Regional Director for Africa. “WHO is the most significant partner to Liberia and other hardest hit country in the sub-region in the fight against Ebola. As a matter of fact, WHO’s partnership with Liberia predates the Ebola crisis,” Ngafuan noted.
He indicated that in the pre-Ebola period, WHO provided technical assistance for health system strengthening, supported Maternal and Child Health as well as disease prevention and control. Minister Ngafuan emphasized that as Liberia is again counting another round of 42 days after which “we expect WHO to declare Liberia an Ebola free country just as it did for other countries in the region that have successfully met the 42-day no new case requirement.” He stressed that Liberia is not relaxing its guard, and believes that with God above, Liberia will surely reach this May 9, 2015 target date when hopefully it would be declared Ebola free by WHO.
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