Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 26 November 2014
111. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the extent to which the international community continues to make efforts to contain the outbreak of Ebola throughout the African continent; if any new outbreaks have been detected; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45526/14]
Amharc ar fhreagraThe spread of the Ebola virus in West Africa continues to present a huge challenge to the international community and the international response has been the subject of detailed discussions and briefings at meetings of the EU Foreign Affairs Council since the most recent outbreak, as well as a host of other international meetings and cross-departmental meetings in Ireland. It is clear that this outbreak has long-since outpaced the capacity of the governments of the most affected countries, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, to respond to it. We have an obligation to strengthen our collective response so that the necessary skilled personnel and medical facilities are funded, mobilised and deployed to West Africa to help deal with the crisis.
The spread of Ebola to Mali is a particularly worrying development. As of 20 November there have been 6 deaths there from Ebola. It is essential that the all of the countries of West Africa are supported in making adequate preparations to prevent the further spread of the virus. Containment is possible, as we have seen in both Senegal and Nigeria.
Ireland will continue to play its part in the international effort to counter the spread of the virus, through the work on the ground of our Embassy in Sierra Leone and our significant financial support. The EU and its Member States have now committed €1.1 billion to the Ebola response. This year, Ireland is providing over €17 million, directly and through NGOs, to the countries in West Africa most affected by the ongoing crisis. Some €10 million is being provided through our annual development programmes in our partner countries, Sierra Leone and Liberia, focused particularly on strengthening the national health systems. Ireland has provided funding of over €4 million in recent months specifically for Ebola treatment facilities in both Sierra Leone and Liberia, as well as for contact-tracing, community sensitisation and child nutrition programmes, among other activities.
In recent days, Minister of State Sherlock and I announced an additional grant of €221,000 for the supply of essential food and non-food items to families in Sierra Leone affected by local quarantine restrictions. There is a moral obligation on donors to meet funding pledges quickly and in full. It is only by tackling the Ebola virus in West Africa that we can ensure its spread will be arrested and lives saved.
