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| Cote-D'Ivoire press 12 August 2014 Dao Abidjan |
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1. “No case of Ebola in Cote d’Ivoire,” Health Minister says A report in Fraternite Matin (p. 9) says that the Ivoirian government is doing everything possible to prevent an Ebola outbreak in the country, according to a joint press conference held by three government officials yesterday: the Minister of Health and the Fight Against HIV/AIDS Dr. Raymonde Goudou-Coffie; the Minister of the Post, Information and Communication Technology, Bruno Kone; and the Minister in Charge of Defense, Paul Koffi Koffi.
Dr. Goudou-Coffie said that the Institut Pasteur, a laboratory in Cote d’Ivoire, has examined all the samples from bats from the Plateau neighborhood of Abidjan and confirmed “The Ebola virus has not been detected in bats living in Plateau.” She also denied a rumor of an Ebola case in the northern region of Odienne.
She noted that though the level of the Ebola epidemic in West Africa has not decreased, preventive measures put in place by the government in Cote d’Ivoire can help prevent it from spilling over into the country.
She called for an increase in epidemiologic surveillance in and at the borders of the country. The minister also announced that the government has committed CFA 280 million (US $570,000) to fight the disease in addition to the CFA 250 million (US $500,000) previously committed and the CFA 60 million (US $122,000) provided by the World Health Organization.
Le Nouveau Reveil (p. 9) reports Dr. Goudou-Coffie as reminding Ivoirians to abide by all measures put in place by the government to prevent the disease and as saying, “The situation is serious and our country is on high alert.”
Le Patriote (p. 12) carries a statement issued by Muslim leaders in Cote d’Ivoire calling on their followers to avoid any behavior that will expose them to the virus. According to an article in Nord-Sud Quotidien (p. 6) the army has been called in to help protect the borders.
The Minister of Defense Paul Koffi Koffi said, “On Sunday, the army sent back seventeen Liberians who were trying to cross into Cote d’Ivoire.” He also announced that the army is prepared to turn back vehicles carrying more than 50 people traveling from countries where Ebola is present.
A report in Le Temps (p. 8&9) says that the Ebola outbreak in West Africa is likely to affect business including transport, tourism, and cross border activities. The paper claims that the epidemic could delay the reopening of schools in Cote d’Ivoire scheduled for September. |
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