Ending the deadliest Ebola outbreak in history is a difficult task, but it is "within our reach", the UN's new mission chief on the disease said, warning that the world has no choice but to beat back the infection.
"This is a global crisis. We definitely have a difficult time ahead of us, but we can achieve it," Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the new head of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER), said on arrival in Ghana on Saturday.
"We have no plan B, we have to get rid of this virus. This is within our reach, but we should not be complacent," said Ahmed, a Mauritanian, who had arrived in Accra to officially assume duty, taking over from American Anthony Banbury.
UNMEER, based in the Ghanaian capital, is leading international efforts in the battle against Ebola.
According to the latest World Health Organization figures, there are more than 20,200 confirmed, probable or suspected cases of Ebola and just over 7,900 reported deaths. The three worst-affected countries are Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea.
"We need to keep going until we don't have even one case, because even one case is too many," he said. "The work ahead remains very hard but we really have no other choice," the Ebola mission chief added, according to the statement.
Ahmed will be visiting Liberia and Sierra Leone this week, and Guinea shortly after, "to reinforce UNMEER's strategic priorities and see first-hand the Ebola response." the text said.
He will be accompanied by UN Special Envoy on Ebola, David Nabarro, it added.
Before his new appointment, Ahmed served as Deputy Special Representative and Deputy Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL).
At a press conference last week in Ghana on the eve of his departure for New York, Banbury had said he was confident that the number of Ebola cases would start to fall in the early part of 2015.
© 2015 AFP
Medical Xpress on facebook
Related Stories
Ebola battle far from over: UN mission chief
West Africa still has a long way to go to beat Ebola, the United Nations' outgoing Ebola mission chief said Friday.
New UN Ebola mission chief to visit West Africa
The United Nations' new Ebola mission chief, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, will travel to West Africa next week for his first visit since his appointment in early December.
New UN Ebola mission chief named
UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Thursday appointed a Mauritanian national to head the UN Ebola mission set up two months ago to combat the world's worst outbreak of the virus.
Recorded Ebola deaths top 7,000
The worst Ebola outbreak on record has now killed more than 7,000 people, with many of the latest deaths reported in Sierra Leone, the World Health Organization said as United Nations Secretary-General Ban ...
Ebola death toll rises to 7,890: WHO
The death toll from the Ebola outbreak in west Africa has risen to 7,890 out of 20,171 cases recorded, the World Health Organization said Wednesday.
Recommended for you
SKorean Ebola medic flown to Germany for anonymity
A South Korean medic exposed to Ebola while working in West Africa has been flown to Germany for treatment because the patient's anonymity would be better protected there, authorities in Berlin said Saturday.
Ebola-struck UK nurse in 'critical' condition (Update)
A British nurse who contracted Ebola in Sierra Leone was in a "critical" condition Sunday, locked in isolation inside a specialist London hospital.
Somalia dismisses Ebola scare
The government of war-torn Somalia has moved to reassure residents that there was no outbreak of Ebola in the country, dismissing rumours that a man had brought the virus back with him from Guinea.
Avian flu found in SE Wash. backyard flock
Avian influenza has been found in a backyard poultry flock in southeast Washington after previously showing up in wild birds in the northwest part of the state, but there is no immediate public health concern, state officials ...
Ebola battle far from over: UN mission chief
West Africa still has a long way to go to beat Ebola, the United Nations' outgoing Ebola mission chief said Friday.
UN tally of Ebola-linked deaths tops 8,000
The World Health Organization says more than 8,000 people are thought to have died last year from the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.
User comments
Please sign in to add a comment. Registration is free, and takes less than a minute. Read more
Click here to reset your password.
Sign in to get notified via email when new comments are made.
© Medical Xpress 2011-2014, Science X network
Ending the deadliest Ebola outbreak in history is a difficult task, but it is "within our reach", the UN's new mission chief on the disease said, warning that the world has no choice but to beat back the infection.
"This is a global crisis. We definitely have a difficult time ahead of us, but we can achieve it," Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, the new head of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER), said on arrival in Ghana on Saturday.
"We have no plan B, we have to get rid of this virus. This is within our reach, but we should not be complacent," said Ahmed, a Mauritanian, who had arrived in Accra to officially assume duty, taking over from American Anthony Banbury.
UNMEER, based in the Ghanaian capital, is leading international efforts in the battle against Ebola.
According to the latest World Health Organization figures, there are more than 20,200 confirmed, probable or suspected cases of Ebola and just over 7,900 reported deaths. The three worst-affected countries are Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea.
"We need to keep going until we don't have even one case, because even one case is too many," he said. "The work ahead remains very hard but we really have no other choice," the Ebola mission chief added, according to the statement.
Ahmed will be visiting Liberia and Sierra Leone this week, and Guinea shortly after, "to reinforce UNMEER's strategic priorities and see first-hand the Ebola response." the text said.
He will be accompanied by UN Special Envoy on Ebola, David Nabarro, it added.
Before his new appointment, Ahmed served as Deputy Special Representative and Deputy Head of the United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL).
At a press conference last week in Ghana on the eve of his departure for New York, Banbury had said he was confident that the number of Ebola cases would start to fall in the early part of 2015.
© 2015 AFP
Medical Xpress on facebook
Related Stories
Ebola battle far from over: UN mission chief
West Africa still has a long way to go to beat Ebola, the United Nations' outgoing Ebola mission chief said Friday.
New UN Ebola mission chief to visit West Africa
The United Nations' new Ebola mission chief, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed, will travel to West Africa next week for his first visit since his appointment in early December.
New UN Ebola mission chief named
UN chief Ban Ki-moon on Thursday appointed a Mauritanian national to head the UN Ebola mission set up two months ago to combat the world's worst outbreak of the virus.
Recorded Ebola deaths top 7,000
The worst Ebola outbreak on record has now killed more than 7,000 people, with many of the latest deaths reported in Sierra Leone, the World Health Organization said as United Nations Secretary-General Ban ...
Ebola death toll rises to 7,890: WHO
The death toll from the Ebola outbreak in west Africa has risen to 7,890 out of 20,171 cases recorded, the World Health Organization said Wednesday.
Recommended for you
SKorean Ebola medic flown to Germany for anonymity
A South Korean medic exposed to Ebola while working in West Africa has been flown to Germany for treatment because the patient's anonymity would be better protected there, authorities in Berlin said Saturday.
Ebola-struck UK nurse in 'critical' condition (Update)
A British nurse who contracted Ebola in Sierra Leone was in a "critical" condition Sunday, locked in isolation inside a specialist London hospital.
Somalia dismisses Ebola scare
The government of war-torn Somalia has moved to reassure residents that there was no outbreak of Ebola in the country, dismissing rumours that a man had brought the virus back with him from Guinea.
Avian flu found in SE Wash. backyard flock
Avian influenza has been found in a backyard poultry flock in southeast Washington after previously showing up in wild birds in the northwest part of the state, but there is no immediate public health concern, state officials ...
Ebola battle far from over: UN mission chief
West Africa still has a long way to go to beat Ebola, the United Nations' outgoing Ebola mission chief said Friday.
UN tally of Ebola-linked deaths tops 8,000
The World Health Organization says more than 8,000 people are thought to have died last year from the Ebola outbreak in West Africa.
User comments
Please sign in to add a comment. Registration is free, and takes less than a minute. Read more
Click here
to reset your password.
Sign in to get notified via email when new comments are made.
© Medical Xpress 2011-2014, Science X network
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar