European Commission to support Mali's anti-Ebola effort

European Commission's Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection Department (ECHO) has said it will continue working with its partners to support Mali's efforts to fight against Ebola outbreak following last week's confirmation of the first case.
"Proper coordination of actors is paramount to stopping the spread of Ebola virus in Mali," a statement issued by ECHO's bureau chief in Mali Patrick Barbier said on Monday.
"We must contain this disease just as Senegal and Nigeria did, by reinforcing surveillance measures and enhancing the country's capacity to isolate and treat any eventual case," he added.
Under the coordination of Mali's health ministry, several actions have been undertaken by ECHO and its partners, the statement said.
It cited the setting up of an isolation unit and a center for treatment of patients in Kayes, western Mali, where the first Ebola case was confirmed in the country.
Ebola virus first appeared in Guinea in March this year. The virus then rapidly spread to neighbouring countries of Sierra Leone and Liberia.
The statement pointed out that since April, the European Union, through ECHO, "responded by mobilizing financial, human and technical means to support activities of humanitarian organizations such as Doctors Without Borders and the International Federation of the Red Cross and the Red-Crescent."
"The European commission managed to mobilize close to 200 million euros (254 million U.S. dollars), out of which 52 million euros went to emergency humanitarian aid. EU member states on their part managed to mobilize over 600 million euros," the statement noted.
Mali has equally received support of 775,000 dollars from China and medical equipments from the World Health Organization to help it fight against the epidemic.