by Tokana Hasavi – EM TV, Port Moresby
As the Ebola epidemic in West Africa worsens in Sierra Leone, there is some positive news for Liberia and Guinea as their situation has somewhat stabilised.
This was confirmed by PNG WHO representative Dr Boris Pavlin. He explained that this is due to management programs that have been galvanised by substantial international support. Although the three countries are affected by this deadly disease that has claimed over 5,000, as indicated by updated World Health Organisation (WHO) statistics, 99.5 per cent of the population in West Africa is not affected.
As a display of PNG’s preparedness, despite health authorities downplaying the chances as “extremely low”, the National Health Department, through its Ebola Task Force and the WHO, announced a detection facility to be built at the Jackson’s International Airport last week Friday.
The facility will be constructed with assistance from Australian Aid, through the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
A source from the contractor charged with arranging logistics and training, on behalf of the Health Department and Australia’s DFAT, confirmed that there was no construction today due to access issues.
The construction comes at a time when the international terminal is experiencing major renovations.
