Appeal for deployment of medical personnel countrywide

The Social and Cultural Commission of the national reconciliation talks in the Central African Republic (CAR) has recommended that the Ministry of Health assign in roughly equal numbers medical personnel to the country's 386 health facilities and order them to report for duty immediately. The recommendation was contained in a report to 350 delegates who have been attending the reconciliation talks. The commission reported that the nation's physicians, medical aides, nurses and midwives were concentrated in Bangui, the capital. While there was one medical doctor for 7,000 people in Bangui, the commission said, there was one for 97,000 in the provinces. Similarly, it said, there was one midwife for 5,800 people in Bangui and one for 37,000 in the countryside. The commission said the absence of midwives in the countryside contributed to the combined infant and maternal mortality rate, now at 94.8 per 1,000. The commission said its 1999 census of medical personnel showed that whereas 4,200 health personnel were needed, only 2,997 were available. Hit by the rebellion that lasted from October 2002 to March 2003, the health system in the CAR is now receiving support from the European Community, especially in the north, where most fighting took place. The commission, which also deals with education and culture, said that 84 percent of medical expenses in the country were covered by foreign aid. In its report released on Thursday, the 76-member commission also recommended that 32 months of salary arrears, now amounting to 75 billion francs CFA (US $125 million), be paid. It has also asked for the setting up of a committee in charge of identifying and granting compensation to all victims of political and military conflicts starting from 1966. The commission, chaired by University of Bangui lecturer Georgette Deballe, was the first to present its report to the plenary. This presentation will be followed by others of the commissions for Truth and Reconciliation, Defence and Security, Politics and Diplomacy, and Economy and Finances. After examining each commission's report and recommendations, final recommendations will be made and presented on 6 October, when the talks are due to end.