President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday asked West African leaders to deepen their efforts in educating their people about the devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The President made this call during a virtual meeting with Jean Kassi-Brou, the President of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Commission.
President Buhari is the ‘ECOWAS COVID-19 Champion.’
He told that the pandemic had yet to reach its peak, a reason they must not rest on their oars.
Buhari advised the ECOWAS Commission to design an economic recovery plan to help member states recover from their COVID-19 induced losses.
He also volunteered that Abuja could be used as the hub for the distribution of support materials to the sub-region, adding that Nigeria too would play its part in giving a helping hand.
The president thanked the Jack Ma Foundation for the “swift interventions made to the West African Health Organisation (WAHO) and the Africa Centre for Disease Control (ACDC).”
The President also commended the support so far received from “development partners such as the European Union, African Development Bank, France and Germany for their financial contributions in the procurement of medical supplies.”
Kassi-Brou, on his part, called for additional strategies to assist the sub-region in fighting the health and economic impact of COVID-19.
He said these included the need for “advocacy at continental and global levels particularly with the G20, World Bank, United Nations and the African Development Bank among others, for support to negate the health and economic damage to the ECOWAS sub-region; and mass awareness campaign to achieve behavioural change among the citizens of the community with effective customs, security and health protocols put in place throughout the sub-region.”
