Regional effort needed to fight Ebola

There is a saying that cruel and savage situations call for drastic measures. The saying was probably what prompted leaders of the 16 countries that form the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to form the Economic Community of West African States Monitoring Group (ECOMOG) to ensure that the West African sub-region remained a peaceful place.

The ECOMOG was of a West African peacekeeping force that began with about 3,000 troops and grew to between 10,000 and 12,000 troops, the vast majority being Nigerians. ECOMOG included forces from five countries of ECOWAS: Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Nigeria and Sierra Leone. They were later joined by Mali and Senegal.

The troops played a yeoman’s role in bringing peace to Liberia and Sierra Leone. Lately, though, I do not hear much about the group. I did not hear of the group intervening in the Ivorian crisis, neither did I hear of them stepping into the Mali situation. But the decision for the group was laudable and still is.

I have talked about the ECOMOG because I believe that the peoples of West Africa have the wherewithal to solve their difficulties through concerted action.

I am worried that ever since the outbreak of Ebola, it is only foreign medical personnel whom we hear of caring for the sick and dying in the affected countries.

I accept that there are some nationals of those countries in the medical profession who are also helping, but the truth is that they are not many. And because a number of them died initially when they tried to help, a number of health professionals dived for cover.

I have, therefore, been wondering if the ECOWAS which recently sent a delegation to Burkina Faso in the event of the resignation of former President Blaise Compaore cannot also create a regional body of medical doctors, nurses and allied health personnel to go and assist Ebola affected countries.

I was touched the other day to hear on BBC of a young doctor from South Africa who was volunteering on his own volition to go to Sierra Leone to help with the efforts to curb the Ebola disease.

What I admired most was his conviction that in every acute situation that occurs, whether natural or man-made — such as the world wars or situations of the onslaught of hurricanes, there always emerges heroes who put their lives on line to save others.

It is understood that there are other doctors elsewhere around the world outside Africa who are waiting for the green light to go to the affected countries to help.

Besides the South African who is willing to go to Sierra Leone to help, the West African initiative to assist, besides sending food items and money, is not encouraging enough.

The over concentration of international assistance efforts on politics to the detriment of other spheres of life among the comity of nations in West Africa is disappointing.

While the initiative of an individual is good, there is need for West African leaders to establish clear way of assistance to achieve broad successes. I am sure a number of health personnel across West Africa may be willing to go to the aid of our brothers and sisters who are suffering from this debilitating disease if only there are detailed plans in determining the course of actions that would be taken to ensure their welfare, including incentive packages and insurance.

This, I believe, will not be difficult to do since a fund for tackling the disease has been set up and is drawing donations from all over the world. We need to do this to also correct the erroneous impression that some people have in the western world and elsewhere that West Africa is a country.

Already, trade restrictions placed on people travelling from West Africa to Europe and the United States of America is humiliating enough. But when it is known that medical personnel from other countries in the sub-region are rallying to support fellow West Africans, it may make a difference in the way we are perceived. Remember, today it is their turn; tomorrow it may be you.