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A barrage of legal challenges threaten to scupper an agreement signed by the US and Kenya to set up an Ebola biocontainment center for US citizens exposed to the virus.
A Nairobi court on Friday morning temporarily barred the government from admitting any persons infected with Ebola into the country under the agreement, with the matter scheduled for further directions on June 2.
The 50-bed facility to be built in one of Kenya’s largest air force bases was expected to be operational by Friday, but has faced massive resistance from opposition leaders, health workers, and civil society. Nairobi-based legal advocacy group Katiba Institute filed a petition on Thursday seeking to halt the agreement. It wants the court to prevent the entry of exposed persons into the country, halt the opening of the facility, and compel the health ministry to publish a comprehensive plan detailing Kenya’s preparedness in case of an Ebola outbreak.
Charles Kanjama, president of the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), told Semafor that the body would also challenge the agreement in court on Friday, blaming the government for bypassing constitutional provisions such as public participation. Pointing to comments by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio that infected American citizens would not be allowed into the US, Kanjama described Washington’s move to set up a containment facility in Kenya as “complete hypocrisy.”
“This agreement has been done by the executive without the involvement of the people of Kenya,” Kanjama said, proposing that the center instead be established in eastern DR Congo or Uganda, where more than 1,000 cases have been reported so far. Kenya is yet to record a case of Ebola but has ramped up surveillance measures due to its shared border with Uganda.
Kenya Medical Practitioners and Dentists Union, the country’s largest health workers’ union, on Thursday said it was “utterly disgusted” by the agreement and threatened industrial action if the agreement was not made public by Saturday.
Following a call with Kenya’s President William Ruto on Thursday, Rubio announced that Kenya would receive $13.5 million to support its preparedness measures, with $112 million committed for the regional response.
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The Ebola outbreak in eastern DR Congo has so far killed 238 people and crossed over into neighbouring Uganda, which has reported one death and at least seven cases. There is no approved vaccine or treatment for the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola, which the World Health Organization (WHO) this month declared an emergency of international concern. A leading US public health expert and former Biden administration official, told Semafor that the outbreak could become the worst on record, surpassing the 2014 crisis in West Africa.
The facility in Kenya is to be established at the Laikipia air base, around 126 miles north of the capital Nairobi. US officials said on a call with reporters on Wednesday that it would provide advanced care for its citizens who develop symptoms until they are evacuated, at which point they will be taken to third countries, likely in Europe. US health officials are in the process of finding facilities to offer high-level care for American citizens.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the US has also opposed the plan to set up the biocontainment center in Kenya, with the agency’s acting director, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, reportedly advising the Trump administration against it.
Step Back
Kenya and the US last December signed a $2.5 billion, five-year health cooperation framework that includes support for infectious disease outbreak response and preparedness. Under terms of the deal, Kenya will also share citizens’ health data with the US while Washington will contribute $1.6 billion in health sector funding with Kenya committing $850 million in domestic co-financing. The agreement similarly faced legal challenges over lack of public participation.
Kanjama told Semafor the LSK was concerned by the “emerging pattern” of opaque bilateral agreements signed by President William Ruto’s administration and would engage the government as well as civil society and the private sector to demand compliance with the constitution in the crafting of such agreements.
Room for Disagreement
Government officials in Kenya on Thursday sought to defend the deal, arguing that Kenya had a key role to play in global health security. They insisted that the country had ramped up preparedness measures, including improving surveillance systems and training frontline health workers, to ensure its citizens were safe in case of a potential outbreak.
“The Kenyan government continues to protect Kenyans, but as we continue to protect Kenyans, we cannot abdicate our obligation and our duty in global health security,” said Medical services principal secretary Ouma Oluga in a press conference. “This is what we have been known for for decades. This is our expertise, so this is the time to show up.”
Notable
- Uganda on Wednesday closed its border with DR Congo due to the rising cases of Ebola reported in the capital Kampala.