By Thomas Gumi

In a move aimed at strengthening the health sector in the frontline areas, the National Ministry of Health with support from the World Health Organization opened a 15-bed health centre to combat infectious diseases in Nimule County, Eastern Equatoria State over the weekend.

Cholera has recently spread across large parts of the country, in addition to the outbreak of monkeypox in counties bordering Uganda, the National Ministry of Health announced.

Dr. Harriet Pasquale Okello, the Undersecretary in the Ministry of Health, told the media that the new facility is being built in a strategic location on the border between South Sudan and Uganda to serve citizens in both countries.

She said that the centre will conduct infectious disease screening operations in addition to providing treatment services.

She added: “The centre can also be used for training on disease response as part of efforts to prepare for any potential outbreak of epidemics.”

“Our primary focus is to enhance surveillance efforts, which includes screening all travelers at major entry points with Uganda. screening has already started in several high-risk areas.” Said Dr Humphrey Karamagi, WHO Representative for South Sudan “with support from WHO, a multidisciplinary team of public health experts is currently dispatched to Nimule, and Kajokeji to conduct risk assessment and define priorities for strengthening early detection, investigation, and response to Ebola Virus Disease.

The center includes a modern laboratory, ultrasound machines and other medical tools for treating infectious diseases. The opening of the center came at a time when the country is facing an outbreak of monkeypox and cholera, as the National Ministry of Health confirmed an outbreak of chickenpox after a case was confirmed involving a 31-year-old foreign national in Kobori camp in Juba.