Message of the UN Resident Coordinator, Ms Nathalie Ndongo-Seh, on the Occasion of the Handing-Over of Medical Supplies for the COVID-19 Response

20th APRIL 2020, CENTRAL MEDICAL STORES, MATSAPHA

-AS DELIVERED-

Director of Ceremony

Honourable Deputy Prime Minister

Honourable Minister of Health

Representatives of WHO, WFP, other UN Agencies and development partners

Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Health

The Director of Health Services

Senior staff of the Ministry of Health

Distinguished health workers

Members of the media

Distinguished ladies and gentlemen

Good morning,

The United Nations Development System in Eswatini stands in profound solidarity with the people of Eswatini in these very challenging times and is committed to supporting His Majesty’s Government in fighting COVID-19. It is therefore with great pleasure that, on behalf of the United Nations, I join you today for this handover of medical equipment and consumables to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic in Eswatini. 

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

We are pleased to hand over Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for health workers which include surgical masks, N95 masks, goggles, gloves, face shields, gowns, in addition to thermometers ventilators and COVID-19 testing kits.  Those equipment and consumables are valued at about three million Emalangeni.

These lifesaving supplies were brought to Eswatini by the UN Solidarity Flight, which is a joint effort by the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Food Programme (WFP), the African Union, the Jack Ma foundation, the

Governments of Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates. These items are donated as a symbol of the friendly relationship between the Government of Eswatini and the United Nations. They also demonstrate the unity promoted by our continental organization the African Union, supported by Member States and key partners in solidarity with the Kingdom of Eswatini.

It is our sincere hope that those medical supplies will be utilized effectively.

As we may recall, WHO’s priority is to ensure that, during the pandemic, frontline health workers around the world are able to access essential health supplies, including personal protective equipment and respirators for patients.

Coincidentally, the UN is focussing on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 3: Good Health and Well-being. Every month, the United Nations places one of the 17 SDGs under the spotlight, highlighting its purpose, targets and criticality in advancing Agenda 2030. Despite the challenges brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, this gives us an opportunity to reflect on the progress we made in ensuring healthy lives and well-being for all people at all ages.

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

While Eswatini has registered 22 confirmed cases to date, this number is unfortunately climbing in a steady and rather stubborn manner.  It is critical that we enhance all measures and mechanisms to prevent this outbreak from further intensifying.

This means:

• strengthening our public health response while finding cases, providing care and isolation, contact tracing and isolation;
• launching a robust and aggressive public awareness and sensitization campaign that reaches out to all individuals and communities in urban and rural areas;
• strictly enforcing our precautionary measures as they relate to compliance with the lockdown, stay at home, practice handwashing several times a day, limit movements to essential ones only, respect the physical distancing, wear masks in public, including cloth masks and do not share masks.

We need to engage further people at the grassroots and any other level,  to obtain public adherence to measures. It is expected that, with adequate information on the risks and support to their daily challenges, the general public may find the best way to protect themselves, their families and the society.

As the UN, we support measures that are people-centred and as such, ensure that medical care is provided;  enable  people to access basic necessities during the lockdown; mitigate increase in vulnerabilities as a result of COVID-19; mitigate socio-economic impacts; and respect the human rights and the dignity of all.

Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen,

As WHO Director General said on 6 April: “Masks alone cannot stop the pandemic. Countries must continue to find, test, isolate and treat every case and trace every contact. Mask or no mask, there are proven things all of us can do to protect ourselves and others – keep your distance, clean your hands, cough or sneeze into your elbow, and avoid touching your face.”

Masks should only ever be used as part of a comprehensive package of interventions. We also discourage in the strongest possible terms the sharing of masks as was recently reported in the media. As the Minister of Health indicated sharing of masks will facilitate the fast and uncontrollable spread of the virus.

COVID-19 is disrupting our societies, but it cannot, and must not, shake our foundations and resolve to save and protect every single life. It is our sincere hope that those medical supplies will be utilized effectively and save lives.

I thank you all for your attention.