Ebola ja muut tartuntatautiuhat esillä GHSA-kokouksessa Washingtonissa
In addition to individual countries, participants in this partnership include the European Union, the World Health Organization WHO, the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation FAO and the World Organisation for Animal Health OIE. The partnership's point of departure relates to the challenges inherent in international mobility and threats to health caused by topical infectious diseases.
The rapidly spreading Ebola epidemic in West Africa is a current example of deficiencies in countries preparedness systems.
Minister Huovinen stressed the importance of coordinated cooperation in her speech in Washington.
"We have on our hands an unprecedentedly serious epidemic that requires a rapid response. The UN missionon the Ebola brings together international actors, and this is where the WHO has a central role. Both large and small countries can participate in direct action. Shared resources should be taken into effective use."
The primary objectives of the health partnership include developing capabilities for responding to infectious diseases, strengthening multidisciplinary cooperation and promoting compliance with the WHO's International Health Regulations at the international level. The Washington meeting will focus on such concrete commitments and goals of the partnership as ability for rapid and efficient response to various transnational biological threats.
Finland's key national commitment is the project funded by the Ministry of Finance and implemented by the Centre for Military Medicine and the Centre of Expertise in Biological Threats that aims to improve biosecurity and build up laboratory capacity in Tanzania. The project will also provide training for local human and veterinary health experts both in Tanzania and Finland.
Combating global biological threats requires extensive cooperation between the various actors. The health partnership strives for improved cooperation between both various branches of administration and international organisations in the areas of health, foreign policy, defence and agriculture. Besides the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defence take part in the project in Finland.
The five-year health partnership project was launched on the initiative of the United States in February 2014. Finland is part of the partnership's steering group and will hold its presidency in 2015.
"Finland is strongly committed to the Global Health Security Agend and its emphasis on cooperation between different sectors," Minister Huovinen says.
Further information
Outi Kuivasniemi, Ministerial Adviser, Ministry of Social Affairs and Health, tel. +358 50 4350 269
Sebastian Hielm, Senior Veterinary Officer, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, tel. +358 295 162305
Hanna -Leena Korteniemi, First Secretary, Ministry for Foreign Affairs , tel. +358 295 351594
Tiina Raijas, Ministerial Adviser, Ministry of Defence, tel. +358 295 140318
Pictures for media: Minister Huovinen in Washington (MSAH mediabank)
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