Ebola Outbreak: India – African Union Forum Summit Postponed
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, May 21: The fourth India – African Union Forum Summit, scheduled to be held in New Delhi later this month after a gap of 11 years, has been postponed due to the “evolving health situation in parts of Africa,” the government announced on Thursday.
Several parts of Africa have reported cases of the deadly Ebola virus, the latest from the Democratic Republic of Congo’s South Kivu province. India and the African Union had been preparing to hold the Fourth India-Africa Forum Summit when the two sides, taking into account the situation in Africa, “reaffirmed the importance of continued cooperation in strengthening public health preparedness and response capacities across the continent, including through support to Africa CDC and relevant national institutions,” India said in the statement.
The summit’s new dates will be finalised through mutual consultations and communicated in due course, the government said. The decision to postpone the summit scheduled to be held from May 28 to 31, was taken after consultations were held between India and the chairperson of the African Union and the African Union Commission. “Following these consultations, the two sides agreed that it would be advisable to convene the Fourth India-Africa Forum Summit at a later date,” the government statement read.
The last India-Africa Forum Summit was held in 2015. Officials here had blamed the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020-’21 for being responsible for the long gap between the two India-Africa Forum Summits. Prior to 2015 similar summits were held in 2011 and 2008. The India-Africa Forum Summits have emerged as the largest structured events that combine diplomatic, cultural, financial and political interactions between India and the countries of the African continent.
“Recognizing the importance of ensuring the full participation and engagement of African leaders and stakeholders, and mindful of the emerging public health situation on the continent, consultations were held between the Government of India, the Chairperson of the African Union, and the African Union Commission regarding the holding of the Summit and associated activities.
“Following these consultations, the two sides agreed that it would be advisable to convene the Fourth India–Africa Forum Summit at a later date,” it added. Both sides reiterated that India and Africa share a longstanding partnership based on solidarity, mutual respect, South–South cooperation, and a shared commitment to peace, development, and prosperity. “India and Africa reaffirmed their longstanding partnership founded on solidarity, mutual respect, South–South cooperation, and a shared commitment to peace, development, prosperity, and the well-being of their peoples.”
India has not reported any case of Ebola. The Centre has also stepped up surveillance and preparedness measures nationwide after the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared the outbreak in parts of Central Africa a public health emergency of international concern.
States and Union Territories have been told to ensure readiness at all levels with standard operating procedures (SOPs) on pre-arrival and post-arrival screening, quarantine protocols, case management, referral mechanisms and laboratory testing, sources said. The necessity for such international caution is heightened by the fact that, far from being a monolith, the Ebola virus manifests through distinct viral strains, each having unique characteristics regarding its lethality, how rapidly it spreads, and its vulnerability to medical interventions.
The postponement of the summit comes a day after the World Health organisation declared the Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. It said that the outbreak “warrants serious concern” as health workers struggle to reach hundreds of thousands of people affected. WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said more than 130 deaths were thought to be linked to the outbreak, with more than 500 suspected cases.
In the wake of the situation, the union health ministry issued an advisory directing travellers arriving from, or transiting through, Ebola-affected countries to immediately report to airport health authorities if they develop symptoms associated with the disease.
“Attention passengers coming from or transiting through affected countries: Passengers who have travelled from countries reporting Ebola Virus Disease — DR Congo, Uganda, and South Sudan (High Risk Country) — and are experiencing any of the following symptoms must take immediate action,” the DGHS advisory said. The Delhi airport also issued an advisory on Thursday asking sick passengers from or transiting through affected countries to “immediately” report to the airport’s health official.
The ministry of health and family welfare issued the advisory, identifying the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda and South Sudan as high-risk countries for Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). The ministry listed symptoms including fever, weakness or fatigue, headache, muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhoea, unexplained bleeding and sore throat. The advisory also asked travellers to self-report if they had direct contact with the blood or body fluids of a person suspected or confirmed to have Ebola.
It added that any passenger developing above-mentioned symptoms within 21 days of arrival should immediately seek medical care and also inform health care authorities about their travel history. “Any traveller developing above-mentioned symptoms within 21 days of arrival should immediately seek medical care and also inform health care authorities about their travel history. Please cooperate with health screening and public health measures in the interest of passenger safety and International Health Regulations (IHR),” the advisory said.
Along with the summit, there were several other events related to Africa that were planned to take place under the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) and ICCR and it is understood that all those events have also been put on hold, though some African delegates have already arrived in New Delhi for the same reasons.
India expressed “solidarity with the peoples and Governments of Africa” and pledged to help them in dealing with the crisis with an “Africa-led” approach. Earlier, the African Union had called for ‘collective international solidarity and cooperation’ to deal with the outbreak of Ebola virus that affected multiple countries including Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. A spokesperson of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission said earlier this week that Fourth India-Africa Forum Summit would provide an opportunity to work on “future pandemics” and response mechanism.
“While the Ebola outbreak is affecting a number of African countries, it is important to underscore that pandemics and public health emergencies respect no borders and require collective international solidarity and cooperation,” Nuur Mohamud Sheekh, Spokesperson of the Chairperson, African Union Commission had said on Monday.
Earlier, Chairperson of the African Union Commission Mahmoud Ali Youssouf had expressed deep concern about the Ebola Virus Disease and said, Africa will ‘overcome’ the latest challenge through “unity, coordination and collective responsibility.”
Driving the current health crisis is the Bundibugyo variant, a less common iteration of the pathogen that historically emerges far less often than the notoriously virulent Zaire strain, which fuelled the catastrophic West African epidemic from 2014 to 2016.
