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On 12 September 2021, the Ministry of Health and Social Services with support from WHO held an orientation on IHR to help strengthen the function of the focal points. The orientation aimed to:
Representation was multi-sectoral with participants from Ministry of Health and Social Services (Radiation and Control, Laboratory, Public and Environmental Health, Communication/Public Relation ), Office of the Prime Minister (Disaster Risk Management), Ministry of Agriculture Water and Land Reform (Zoonotic Control and Plant Health), Agro-Marketing and Trade Agency (AMTA) and Namibia Institute of Pathology (NIP).
One of the core functions of the IHR focal persons is to notify WHO IHR Contact Points of all events which may constitute a public health emergency of international concern within the Republic of Namibia and the health measures implemented in response. The focal points are required to provide ongoing public health information to WHO on the notified event. Coordination of partners and disseminating information between relevant partners and WHO is also one of the core functions.
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The orientation covered key themes including:
To operationalize the IHR Focal Points Network in Namibia, the team agreed to draft an action plan and engage WHO for support, ensure that they receive appointment letters to officiate their function, and institute regular meetings.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of WHO Regional Office for Africa.