Kanyankore Marcel Rudasingwa has been appointed as Ebola Crisis Manager for Guinea. This was announced on Wednesday by UN Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon.
Rudasingwa will work with the Guinean government, along with key stakeholders, to ensure a rapid and effective international response to the Ebola crisis in the country. The appointment is part of the newly established United Nations Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER).
In a statement announcing Rudasingwa’s appointment, Ban Ki Moon said that he “brought great value of service with United Nations Children’s Fund for almost 20 years, having served extensively in various senior management and leadership functions in Kenya, Mali, Guinea and Denmark”.
Ban Ki Moon also appointed Peter Jan Graaff of the Netherlands as Manager for Liberia and Amadu Kamara of the United States as Manager for Sierra Leone.
The outbreak of Ebola, a highly contagious and fatal virus transmitted through close contact with the infected, has spread rapidly across West Africa since early cases were detected in March, leaving thousands of sick and dead in its wake and sowing panic among local communities.
The United Nations ramped up its response to the unprecedented outbreak by adopting The Security Council Resolution 2177 on Sept. 18 declaring the Ebola a “threat to international peace and security”.
The establishment of UNMEER, the first-ever UN emergency health mission, followed the unanimous adoption of a General Assembly resolution adopted on Sept. 19 to provide a platform for wide- ranging international efforts to put an end to the spread of the disease.
The UN committee on administrative and budgetary issues on Tuesday approved funding of 49.9 million U.S. dollars for the Mission.
SOURCE: http://allafrica.com/stories/201410090740.html
