WHO creates independent panel to assess its Ebola response

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Wednesday 11 Mar 2015 - 12:05 Makkah mean time-20-5-1436 Reuters/Image London (IINA) – The World Health Organization (WHO) said it has created a panel of independent experts to assess its response to the biggest-ever Ebola outbreak in history, AP reported. In a statement issued Tuesday, the WHO said the panel was commissioned after a resolution passed by its executive board. The panel will be chaired by Barbara Stocking, a former chief executive of Oxfam GB (leading UK charity fighting global poverty). The panel will publish a preliminary progress report on its findings in May. The UN health agency’s handling of the Ebola outbreak that has killed over 9,900 people in West Africa has been heavily criticized. WHO admitted in an internal draft report that it fumbled early attempts to curb the outbreak, blaming incompetent staff and a lack of real-time information. Others also criticized WHO for not declaring an international health emergency until nearly 1,000 people had died. AB/IINA