The health ministers of the Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) agreed to send aid to Haití to fight the cholera epidemic that has swept across the Caribbean country.
The representatives of Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Peru, Venezuela, Bolivia, Uruguay, Paraguay, Brazil and Ecuador participated on Monday in a video conference in which they decided to send aid.
The first immediate assistance will include medical teams, supplies and oral rehydration salts, solutions, gastric tubes, intravenous catheters, gauze and adhesives.
The first batch of aid will be sent on Wednesday, 27th October from Venezuela.
Ecuadorian Health Minister, David Chiriboga, as President Pro Tempore of the Health Council of the regional sector, was responsible for coordinating the meeting.
He said that all aid be coordinated through the UNASUR to optimize resources and accelerate the delivery.
He added that all counties send a list to Ecuador of resources they can bring in supplies and drugs.
This will produce a list that will be placed before the Ministry of health of Haití in order to prioritize the greatest needs.
The cholera epidemic that broke out last week in Haití and left 259 dead and around 3,000,300 hospitalized.
On 12th January the Caribbean country suffered an earthquake with its epicenter in the capital, Port au Prince.
The earthquake left about 270 people dead, 4,000 injured and more than 1.5 million homeless.
Story courtesy of Agencia Pulsar, a news agency run by AMARC-ALC network of community radios.
