First AU Ebola team arrives in Liberia

The African Union (AU) said on Monday in a statement that its first team combating the Ebola outbreak in West Africa has arrived in Monrovia, Liberia.

The team comprising of both medical and non-medical support personnel are expected to swing into action providing support to the Liberian government in curbing the menace of the deadly Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), noted the statement.

Deputy chief of protocol at the Liberian ministry of foreign affairs appreciated the willingness of the team and encouraged them in the mission to defeat what he called "the Ebola war".

Re-deployments to different counties in Liberia are expected to commence soon, said the statement.

Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, AU Commission Chairperson, and Ban Ki- moon, UN Secretary General (UNSG), on Sunday discussed the need to enhance finance and mobilization of medical personnel needed to step-up the fight against Ebola virus disease affecting Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone, said AU in another statement.

The two officials met yesterday to discuss critical issues on Africa ahead of the opening of the 69th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, United States. They agreed to coordinate the various initiatives and also to increase awareness-raising efforts to address the psychological challenges and misperceptions around the disease. Dlamini-Zuma and Ban Ki-moon will co-chair a number of sessions including those on climate change, Special Summit on Somalia, and a review session of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework of the Great Lakes, amongst others, said the statement.

Climate change and elections in Africa were also discussed as well as the specific situations in South Sudan, Guinea Bissau, Libya and the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to the statement. Enditem