East African countries must establish a joint health emergency plan to combat the threat of Ebola virus to the region, aviation officials have said.

Members of the East African Community-Civil Aviation Safety and Security Oversight Agency (EAC-CASSOA) said there is a need to institute immediate measures to mitigate and prevent the spread of the virus and other communicable diseases into the region, saying Kenya, a member state, has already been classified as a high risk country.

“We strongly advocate for a regional approach to establishment of methods and strategies towards combating this scourge bearing in mind the fact that some operators based or transiting through the East African Community Partner States operate direct flights into the affected region,” read a statement after holding the emergency meeting recently.

EAC-CASSOA Executive Director Barry Kashambo said there is a need to ‘put up joint effort to prevent the possible spread of Ebola in the region.’

They want the plan named the National Aviation Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan.

The development comes after Ebola was confirmed in Democratic Republic of Congo on Sunday, an EAC neighbour. Uganda’s ministry of Health moved fast and issued a statement, saying six screening centres will be set up on all border points with the affected country.

The EAC-CASSOA meeting urged all member states to conduct screening of all persons at airports, seaports and major land crossings for suspected cases of the virus. All passengers will also be required to carry their Public Health Passenger Locator Forms aimed at tracing any exposed travellers.

The EAC Council of Ministers is expected to develop a monitoring and evaluation tool to follow-up on the implementation of the recommendations and make a report on the progress before November 30.

Meanwhile, the Director General of Health Services, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng, has ordered for a Passenger Tracking Record for all airlines to enable the Ebola screening centre at Entebbe airport to identify potential Ebola suspects.

“While filling health forms at the arrival desk, some passengers tell lies on the places they have been to. This makes it difficult for screening,” she said during a visit to the screening centre Tuesday.

Daily Monitor