advertisement
Facebook
X
LinkedIn
WhatsApp
Reddit

SA government wants to raise R250m from business to help fight ebola

With the ebola outbreak not showing any signs of stopping, South Africa’s Department of Health (DoH) has set itself a goal of raising R250 million to assist the nations that have been affected, with Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone being the worst off.

However the DoH needs help to raise money for the newly formed Ebola Response Fund. “DoH is making an urgent call to South Africa’s private sector to donate to the Ebola Response Fund. The objective of the Fund is to support South Africa’s drive to assist the affected countries to halt the social and humanitarian crisis that is unfolding in the region,” it said in a press statement.

The Fund has already managed to get support from a number of companies that are listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, and the SA government has already committed R32.5 million of its (our) own money to the cause with the World Health Organisation (WHO) also pledging its support to the fund.

“A pledge to donate money to the Ebola Response Fund will go a long way into helping Africa tackle this social and humanitarian crisis,” says Ms Malebona Matsoso, Director-General of Health in South Africa.

Donations to the Fund will used to:

  • Setting up a 40-bed Ebola treatment unit in Sierra Leone
  • Provision of qualified people to staff the treatment unit
  • Strengthening of the surveillance system and database
  • Supporting social mobilisation efforts in the communities in affected countries
  • Expanding laboratory capacity, and
  • Project management

“We are counting on South Africa’s private sector to actively support this attempt to stop the spread of the Ebola virus across the continent. We believe that corporate South Africa will respond positively to this clarion call to assist the affected countries. We are grateful to a number of major South African companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange who have already pledged millions to the Ebola Response Fund, as well as committing their companies to other in-kind contributions.”

advertisement

About Author

advertisement

Related News

advertisement