ALBA: Cuba to Host Regional Summit on Ebola

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cuban doctors off to west africa to fight ebola.(Photo:  Cuban doctors leave for West Africa to join the fight against the Ebola virus)

ALBA 2Heads of state and government and other representatives of the countries that make up the regional integration bloc Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our Americas-Treaty of Commerce for the Peoples (ALBA-TCP), will gather in Havana on October 20 to address a joint contribution to the prevention and fight against Ebola, an epidemic currently hitting Western and Central Africa.

The summit, according to official dailyGranma, will be held to coordinate Ebola-fighting activities in West Africa and prevention in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Nicolas Maduro VP Venezudla“We ALBA countries have the most protected and powerful healthcare systems in Latin America,” Maduro said during a local healthcare event at the Teatro Nacional in Caracas. “We will have a special meeting  to coordinate all knowledge and work protocols.”

“With the objective of coordinating regional cooperation for the prevention of and confrontation with Ebola, an extraordinary summit of the Bolivarian Alliance (ALBA) will be held in Havana,” the short announcement said, adding that ALBA heads of state and government and other high-ranking officials of member nations will attend.  Officials from international organizations will also participate.

The meeting comes ahead of the 10th anniversary summit of ALBA, to be held Dec. 14 in Havana.

Cuba has received high praise even in the United States for sending over 400 doctors and nurses to Sierra Leone and Liberia to battle Ebola. Thousands more Cuban medics have volunteered, according to official media.

ALBA includes Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Ecuador, Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Saint Lucia. Grenada and St. Christopher and Nevis agreed to join the bloc; Suriname is an observer.

alba-flags-together

This meeting comes as the U.N. Secretary General made a call for additional international help in preventing and coping with the epidemic affecting Western and Central Africa.

There have been over four thousand deaths attributed to Ebola since the outbreak in March and the figure is expected to rise, mostly due to substandard health care facilities in the region.

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2 thoughts on “ALBA: Cuba to Host Regional Summit on Ebola”

  1. Pingback: Spanish government party blames Ebola victim nurse | Dear Kitty. Some blog

  2. Nuff respek to Cuba, ALBA an de countries involved. Jamaica’s absence???? As usual, Cuba remain a beacon of brotherhood an solidarity.

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