By Allieu Sahid Tunkara
Director of the Sierra Leone Postal Services has disclosed plans to join the fight against the Ebola virus disease by using this year’s World Post Day to launch a sustained programme of information dissemination nationwide.
Sammy Koroma said they were planning to launch several activities on October 9, which would include house-to-hose hand delivery of mails carrying messages on Ebola. He said they would also use their mail clerks to collaborate with the Emergency Operations Centre in that regard.
The director said on each World Post Day the global postal administration would encourage member countries to embark on different vital programmes and activities to generate awareness among people. He said they had chosen to disseminate information on Ebola because “information is crucial in the fight against the viral disease that has killed over 500 people since May and is still ravaging the country”.
“My organisation will come in to heighten the fight,” Koroma promised, adding that “we will continuously provide support to the Emergency Operations Centre until the fight is won.”
Asked about the budgetary implication of the project, Mr.Koroma said his organisation was not thinking of the monetary cost of the exercise, but it was concentrating mainly on the dissemination of information.
He said he was hopeful that that would yield positive results and would surely make a difference in the fight against Ebola in the country.
SALPOST is a member of the Universal Postal Union, UPU, and the Panafrican Postal Union, PAPU. The UPU and PAPU are specialised agencies of the UN in the coordination of postal policies among member nations in addition to the worldwide postal system and of the AU in the field of postal services respectively.
(C) Politico 02/10/14
