CAR among countries least prepared to fight Covid-19
Seventy percent of health services is provided by humanitarian organisations and more than 2.5 million people, half of the population, need health assistance.
CAPE TOWN, April 9 (ANA) -The Central African Republic (CAR) is among the least prepared countries to face the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
The organisation pointed out a series of aggravating factors rendering the country both vulnerable and the response to the pandemic difficult.
It said, first, the health system is barely functioning due to a chronic shortage of skilled health workers, medical equipment and basic medicines.
Seventy percent of health services is provided by humanitarian organisations and more than 2.5 million people, half of the population, need health assistance.
One in four Central Africans needs to walk for over an hour to reach the nearest clinic, and for many, the bills for consultations and medications are unaffordable.
When it comes to regular hand-washing with soap and water, the situation does not look brighter, according to the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
It said only one in three Central Africans has access to clean water, a toilet and shower. For many, soap is a luxury.
Access to water and sanitation is particularly problematic at the many sites where 235,000 internally displaced people (IDP) live, according to the Commission on Population Movement.
The Central African nation has recorded 5,402 cases, 5,056 recoveries and 74 deaths since the first Covid-19 case was declared on March 14, 2020.
To meet the most urgent needs in 2021, humanitarian partners plan to assist 1.84 million people, for which they will require US$444.7 million, OCHA said.
“Never in the past five years have there been so many people in acute need as today. The pandemic hit a country already ravaged by decades of armed conflict and underdevelopment,” said OCHA.
Measures to contain the spread and to protect the population were taken immediately after the first case was detected, with the support of the humanitarian community.
By the end of March, schools were closed countrywide, group gatherings were banned, international flights were halted and movements between Bangui and the regions restricted, with the exception of those related to humanitarian assistance.
– African News Agency (ANA); Editing by Yaron Blecher
