Ministry of Health has called on donors on Thursday to increase their dedicated funding for adolescent and youth health.
The Call to Action for Adolescent and Youth Health in Ethiopia was held today.
In his opening remark, Health Minister Amir Aman (MD) said achieving the bold targets of 2020 will require us to do things differently, innovatively, and above all requires us to re-commit our time and resource to attain better health for adolescents and youth.
Ministry of Health has developed a five-year comprehensive strategy that costs USD 1.4 billion, Amir said, and urged donor communities to increase funding, provide on-ground support in creating quality youth-responsive facilities, centers, and schools.
“I want to encourage donors, governmental and non-governmental organizations, and stakeholders to re-state and step-up their commitment to achieving set targets,” he added.
Noting that the future of the country rests on the hopes and aspirations of adolescents and youth, he said “their health is fundamentally a key contributor to our economic development and social wellbeing.” (ENA)
Ethiopia taking measures to prevent Ebola virus
Ethiopia has established a high-level national taskforce to prevent Ebola virus that has occurred in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Briefing journalists on Tuesday, Public Health Institute Director-General Eba Abate (MD) said similar taskforces formed in regions are making preparations to prevent the virus.
According to him, the contribution of Ethiopia to the 2014-15 outbreaks in West Africa “has given us a good experience that helps to preventing the disease.”
Screening and quarantine centers have become operational at international airports in the country, Eba revealed.
The prevention has become necessary as Ethiopian flies to Democratic Republic of Congo and other countries that share borders with the country, it was learned.
The experienced health professionals that work 24 hours at the centers are well equipped and supported by health institutes and inspection team, Dr. Eba said.
Some 39 cases of Ebola were reported between April 4 and May 13 and 19 deaths in Democratic Republic of Congo, according to World Health Organization. (ENA)
Gov’t transfers assignments of 12 taskforces to pertinent institutions
The Government of Ethiopia on Thursday decided to give the assignments given for the 12 taskforces established by Executive Committee of EPRDF to pertinent institutions.
The Executive Committee of the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) formed the taskforces during its meeting held for 17 successive days last December to resolve problems the country faced.
The government has provided supports to the taskforces and made every effort to closely follow up their works, said Government Communication Affairs Office (GCAO) in a statement sent to Fana Broadcasting Corporate (FBC) today.
After evaluating their performances, the government has reached at a conclusion that questions raised by the people could be answered adequately through an integrated institutional effort, the statement indicated.
Accordingly, a decision has been made to transfer assignments of the taskforces to relevant bodies, it noted.
Now, more than ever before, the government is committed to respond to questions of the people and to resolve problems piled up for years, it stated. (FBC)
Ministry to take measures against illegal tour guides
Ministry of Culture and Tourism said on Tuesday that it would take appropriate legal measures against illegal tour guides so long as they do not restrain themselves from the tour business.
“We together with the tour guides association are following closely these wrong doers. Sooner or later, they will be held accountable for their illegal acts and damage cost in tour business as a whole,” said Tewedros Derebew, Director of Tourist Service Quality Assurance and Grading at the Ministry.
He also said having extensive discussion on action plan in this regard with the association the Ministry is set to apply the action plan in the near future.
As a way forward, the Director noted that the Ministry is expected to notify tourism service providers about the unlawful activities of such pseudo tour guides in a bid to apply strong inspection in tourist destinations.
For his part, tour guide Abiy Dagne asserted that illegal tour guides have been creating havoc in tour business than ever before. (The Ethiopian Herald)
