US To Allocate N81 Billion, 3000 Troops To Fight Ebola

 

The United States of America has upped the ante against the Ebola outbreak as it is sending 3000 troops to West Africa to contribute to efforts to halt the spread of the deadly disease.

The US troops will be stationed in Monrovia, the capital of disease-ravaged Liberia.

The development was disclosed by the White House on Tuesday, September 16, 2014  in a press statement. read below...

The United States will leverage the unique capabilities of the U.S. military and broader uniformed services to help bring the epidemic under control.

'U.S. Africa Command will set up a Joint Force Command headquartered in Monrovia, Liberia, to provide regional command and control support to U.S. military activities and facilitate coordination with U.S. government and international relief efforts,'

'A general from U.S. Army Africa, the Army component of U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM), will lead this effort, which will involve an estimated 3,000 U.S. forces.'

Command engineers will build additional Ebola Treatment Units in affected areas, and the U.S. Government will help recruit and organize medical personnel to staff them.

Additionally, the Command will establish a site to train up to 500 health care providers per week, enabling healthcare workers to safely provide direct medical care to patients.

TIME reports that the U.S. effort, named Operation United Assistance, “will include the deployment of 3,000 U.S. military forces and more than $500 million (N81,424,870,086.62) in defense spending drawn from funding normally used for efforts like the war in Afghanistan”

The current Ebola outbreak has infected more than 4,000 people and claimed over 2000 lives in West Africa.