Ghana has been chosen to host a multi-agency emergency preparedness simulation, aimed at improving West Africa’s response to potential health crises such as Ebola and Marburg outbreaks. 

The high-level exercise, which began yesterday, in Accra, brings together United Nations agencies, non-governmental organisations, and representatives from several West African nations.

The five-day simulation exercise will test and refine response protocols, facilitating the swift mobilisation of personnel, medical supplies and essential resources across the region.

It will also offer an opportunity for the country to not only test its response capabilities but also to share its expertise with neighbouring countries, thereby strengthening regional resilience.

WHO

The World Health Organisation (WHO) Country Representative, Dr Frank Lule, said this year marked 10 years since the West African Ebola virus disease outbreak, which started in Guinea then quickly spread to neighbouring countries Sierra Leone and Liberia.

The outbreak, which lingered on for 28 months, spreading to seven additional countries, affected more than 28,600 people with 11,325 mortalities recorded.

He said that illustrated how outbreaks of high-impact pathogens could evolve from small, localised events into global threats when containment capacities were inadequate at the points of origin.

Since this outbreak, Dr Lule said the WHO had undergone internal re-structuring and completely overhauled its approach to dealing with public health emergencies. 

“The WHO continues to be guided by the lessons from this outbreak and many others to ensure that populations are protected from the impact of such events.

“It is in this spirit that the WHO has so heavily invested in partnerships, research, tools and innovations to keep the world safe,” Dr Lule said.

He further expressed confidence that the simulation exercise would strengthen capacities in case management, provide valuable lessons in the deployment and utilisation of innovative tools and provide inputs into the roadmap for the next steps of the project.

Preparedness

A Technical Advisor at the Ministry of Health, Dr Darius Osei, commended the WHO for choosing Ghana as the host for the critical exercise.

He emphasised the importance of preparedness, citing the country’s experience with past outbreaks and its position as a logistical hub in West Africa.

“This simulation is a unique opportunity to test our response capabilities and to strengthen collaboration with our neighbours,” he added.

According to Dr Osei, Africa faces over 100 health emergencies annually, putting immense pressure on governments and health systems to respond swiftly. 

He said high-impact outbreaks such as ebola, polio, cholera, and COVID-19 had underscored the need for robust response frameworks, especially in areas with limited public health resources.