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Foreign Minister Steinmeier: We mustn’t leave the people of West Africa on their own! Federal Foreign Office provides another five million euros for the fight against Ebola
Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has decided to increase Federal Foreign Office aid for the countries affected by the Ebola virus by another five million euros.
He issued the following statement in Berlin on 18 September:
The situation in the countries affected by Ebola is dramatic. The Ebola virus is spreading even further in West Africa. We must expect a continuing rise in the number of people infected. There is no end to the emergency in sight. The countries of the region, in particular Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, are overwhelmed by the burden.
We mustn’t leave those affected on their own in this situation!
We therefore have a responsibility, along with the international community, to provide comprehensive assistance.
Tomorrow the State Secretaries of the various Federal Ministries with an interest in the matter will be meeting at the Federal Foreign Office to coordinate all the Federal Government’s next moves in the fight against Ebola.
Background information:
So far the Federal Government has made available around 12 million euros of aid, including approx. 1.8 million in Federal Foreign Office funding to support various measures in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia. The money has gone to help finance projects run by Médecins Sans Frontières, Welthungerhilfe, Humedica, the Bernhard Nocht Institute and the WHO.
The Federal Government will also be putting Ebola on the agenda for the G7 Foreign Ministerial in New York on 25 September under the German G7 presidency.