Press Advisories

18. 9. 201422:57

The Czech Republic is providing assistance to countries suffering from the Ebola virus

On 18 September 2014, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the CR, Lubomír Zaorálek, approved the provision of immediate financial assistance to Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.

Aid amounting to CZK 3 million will be provided for immediate medical assistance in the region through the NGO, Doctors Without Borders, which is active in the region and is calling for additional foreign aid. Since last spring, countries in western and central Africa have been struggling against the occurrence of the highly dangerous Ebola virus, which has escalated into a local epidemic over recent weeks, with high mortality rates amongst those infected, which also include dozens of health workers.

Minister Zaorálek also attended today’s meeting between Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka and the Director of the Doctors Without Borders organisation in the CR, Pavel Gruber. At the meeting, which was also attended by the Ministers of Health, Interior and Defence, discussions also focused on other ways in which the CR would provide material, logistic and financial assistance to the countries affected.

In a related event, the Czech embassy in Brussels organised a presentation of Czech medical products designed to combat the spread of the Ebola virus on 15 September 2014, which was attended by international institutions involved in the effort. The Czech presentation attracted great interest from representatives of these organisations. The Brussels office of Doctors Without Borders purchased a number of mobile devices known as “bio-bags” from the Czech producer, which are used to transport patients suspected of infection from highly dangerous diseases.

The MFA CR provides Czech citizens with practical information on issues relating to the Ebola virus on its website: http://www.mzv.cz/jnp/cz/cestujeme/ebola/index.html

Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs