Ghana to serve as int'l logistics base for Ebola-hit countries

The United Nations (UN) and other international organizations seeking to send logistics support to Ebola-hit countries in West Africa will use Ghana as their logistics base for onwards transmission into those countries, information received from the presidency late Friday said.

It said President John Mahama had agreed to a request from UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to that effect.

"This follows a Friday evening telephone conversation between President Mahama and Ban Ki-moon. The UN and other International Organizations will therefore use Accra as a Center for airlifting supplies and personnel to the most affected countries - Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea," the statement said.

Friday, Senegal also reported its first case of Ebola when a student from Guinea who was suffering from the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) escaped to a hospital in Dakar, the Senegalese capital seeking treatment.

Most regular commercial flights into the affected areas in West Africa have been suspended, making it difficult for equipment, logistics and personnel to reach the affected nations.

"Using Accra as the Logistics and Coordination Center would therefore open a vital corridor to get urgently-needed supplies and health personnel into the affected countries and areas," according to the statement.

It said the UN and Ghana will work closely to put in place appropriate screening and prevention measures to avoid any adverse effects on Ghana as a result of the operations of the Logistics Center.

In addition to that, it said the UN would also assist Ghana in reviewing and strengthening the country's Ebola preparedness, as steps are taken to prevent the virus from entering the country.

The World Health Organization puts the EVD infection cases in West Africa at over 3,000 with over half of that figure already dead.