MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION on the EU’s response to the Ebola outbreak

16.9.2014 - (2014/2842(RSP))

to wind up the debate on the statements by the Council and the Commission
pursuant to Rule 123(2) of the Rules of Procedure

Fabio De Masi, Sabine Lösing, Merja Kyllönen, Takis Hadjigeorgiou, Neoklis Sylikiotis, Marie-Christine Vergiat, Younous Omarjee, Lola Sánchez Caldentey, Pablo Echenique, Pablo Iglesias, Teresa Rodriguez-Rubio, Tania González Peñas, Marina Albiol Guzmán, Kateřina Konečná, Marisa Matias, Patrick Le Hyaric, Helmut Scholz, Dimitrios Papadimoulis, Malin Björk, Cornelia Ernst, Sofia Sakorafa, Kostadinka Kuneva, Iosu Juaristi Abaunz, João Ferreira, Inês Cristina Zuber, Miguel Viegas, Emmanouil Glezos, Kostas Chrysogonos, Barbara Spinelli, Martina Michels on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group

B8‑0124/2014

European Parliament resolution on the EU’s response to the Ebola outbreak
(2014/2842(RSP))

The European Parliament,

–       having regard to the ‘public health emergency of international concern’ announcement by the World Health Organisation (WHO) of 8 August 2014,

–       having regard to the WHO Ebola response roadmap of 28 August 2014,

–       having regard to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control’s Ebola risk assessment of 27 August 2014,

–       having regard to the Statement on the Ebola outbreak in West Africa by the Commissioner for Health, Tonio Borg, of 8 August 2014,

–       having regard to the Statement on the EU’s response to the Ebola outbreak by the Commissioner for Development, Andris Piebalgs, and the Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, Kristalina Georgieva, of 5 September 2014,

–       having regard to the United Nations Special Briefing on Ebola by Dr Joanne Liu, international president of Médecins Sans Frontières, of 2 September 2014,

–       having regard to Rule 123(2) of its Rules of Procedure,

A.     whereas the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), formerly known as Ebola haemorrhagic fever, is a severe, often fatal, illness in humans;

B.     whereas the Ebola outbreak which was officially declared on 22 March in Guinea is now affecting the whole West African region, and especially Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone and Senegal;

C.     whereas the World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the Ebola outbreak a public health emergency crisis of international concern calling for a coordinated international response;

D.     whereas the most active NGOs on the ground such as Médecins Sans Frontières and the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent have condemned the international response as dangerously inadequate;

E.     whereas the European Commission’s Humanitarian Aid and Civil Protection department has pledged more than EUR 147 million in humanitarian and development aid in order to contain the spread of the virus, provide treatment and essential equipment to infected persons and deploy humanitarian experts;

F.     whereas only EUR 11.9 million out of the EUR 147 million pledged specifically address some of the most urgent humanitarian needs;

G.     whereas EU Member States have the capacity to mobilise immediate response teams to ensure early diagnosis, isolation (with suspected cases and confirmed cases in different wards), the monitoring of contact persons and tracing of transmission chains, and immediate healthcare for the affected populations;

H.     whereas affected countries already suffer from shortages of food and clean water and economic collapse caused by the disruption of trade, commercial flights and harvest work following the outbreak of the epidemic;

I.      whereas the outbreak has revealed shortcomings in the health systems and services of the countries affected and the urgent need for support to strengthen these;

1.      Deplores the loss of lives in the region devastated by the Ebola outbreak;

2.      Regrets the slow and derisory response by Member States to this Ebola outbreak and the delay in providing an adequately coordinated strategy;

3.      Urges that a ministerial meeting of the Council of the European Union take place to establish a strategy to mobilise the medical response to provide humanitarian aid from the Member States under the coordination of the European Commission;

4.      Calls for preparations for the urgent deployment of specialised civilian medical staff and the mobilisation of international medical expertise;

5.      Welcomes the WHO’s announcement of the deployment of 165 specialised medical staff from Cuba in the affected region, the largest offer of a foreign medical team by any single country during this Ebola outbreak;

6.      Calls on the European Commission to draw up needs assessments and country-specific plans to determine the demand for health personnel, mobile laboratories, laboratory equipment, protective clothing and the establishment of isolation wards;

7.      Considers the WHO Ebola response roadmap to be a basis for priority activities, notably the differentiated response for countries with widespread transmission, initial cases and neighbouring countries in which preparedness has to be strengthened;

8.      Calls on the Member States to coordinate flights and establish dedicated air bridges to move health personnel and equipment to the affected countries and to provide medical evacuation if necessary;

9.      Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the governments and parliaments of the African Union, and the World Health Organisation.