THE Southern African Development Community (SADC) has temporrily suspended all face to face meetings in the wake of the Corovavirus (COVID-19) which has claimed more than 3000 lives in China and other parts of the world.
By Michael Gwarisa
The new development was announced yesterday at the SADC Ministers of Health which was held at Julius Nyerere International Convention Centre, Dar es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania, under the Chairpersonship of Honourable Ummy Mwalimu, Minister of Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children for the United Republic of Tanzania, and Chair of the SADC Sectoral Committee of Ministers of Health.
In a statement, SADC said the temporary suspension to metings was necessary in the response to the virus and the SADC will be monitoring members to ensure they comply.
“The meeting recommended a temporary suspension of SADC regional face-to-face meetings and encourage utilization of Modern Technology such as video-conferences, Webinars and Skype Calls for holding such meetings until such a time when the situation has been contained.
“The temporary suspension to be monitored by the Chairperson of Council, supported by the SADC Secretariat.
The meeting agreed that SADC Member States, in collaboration with WHO and Africa CDC, will continuously provide training and support to enhance readiness and preparedness of SADC Member States,” said SADC
The meeting also urged Member States to encourage preventive measures such as handwashing and sanitization of surfaces, in workplaces and domestic settings. The meeting also urged SADC Member States to utilize the SADC Pooled Procurement Services through Medical Stores Department (MSD) for the procurement of medicines and supplies.
The meeting was attended by Angola, DRC, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The main purpose of the meeting was to share existing knowledge and information on the COVID-19 outbreak, which has had devastating global impacts since its outbreak in December 2019, and agree on how to harmonise and coordinate the preparedness and response to Covid-19 in the SADC region.
“The meeting noted that COVID-19 has been declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) by the World Health Organization on 30 January 2020, with potential significant impacts. The meeting also received presentation and noted the COVID-19 global situation and measures taken at global level as presented by WHO, and the Government of the People’s Republic of China.
“The meeting also noted the status on the level of preparedness of the Member States in addressing COVID-19, and urged Member States to put in place National Preparedness and Response Plans as well as contingency and emergency funds to address gaps in prevention, impact mitigation and other interventions.”
The meeting also urged Member States to institute Peer Review Mechanisms to validate self-assessment reports on readiness, and requested international cooperating partners, through the WHO and the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC), to support Member States in the development and implementation of country plans, as well as in resource mobilization for health-related infrastructure development.
The meeting agreed that Member States will establish coherent mechanisms of sharing information on issues of transboundary public health concern, and that the Technical Committee for Coordinating and Monitoring the Implementation of the SADC Protocol on Health comprising of Directors of Public Health and Directors of Medical Services be reestablished, and its terms of reference be expanded.
