Juba, South Sudan, 14 May 2020: The Minister of Health Hon. Elizabeth Achuei Yol, along with UNICEF Representative in South Sudan Dr. Mohamed Ag Ayoya and UNDP Resident Representative Dr. Kamil Kamaluddeen launched the Public Health Emergency Operations Centre in Juba today.

“The centre will improve the operations of the Ministry of Health's hotline to respond to COVID-19. This call centre will remain operational for other public health events beyond COVID-19,” said Hon. Elizabeth Achuei Yol, Minister of Health.

The fully functional Public Health Emergency Operations Centre in Juba will serve citizens across the country. The two-story building is fully equipped with 16 calling stations, a situation meeting room to serve as a command center for coordination, and the office for the incident manager leading the national response to COVID-19.

The Public Health Emergency Operations Centre has been established by UNDP, in collaboration with WHO and UNICEF for coordination of the national response to the COVID-19 outbreak and crisis.

 “The Public Health Emergency Operations Centre acts as an integral part of South Sudan’s response and coordination mechanism during the COVID-19 outbreak. We are committed to working together to serve South Sudan during these trying times,” said Dr. Kamil Kamaluddeen, Resident Representative of UNDP South Sudan.

The call center provides a toll-free 24-hour service to contact the Ministry of Health and enhances public health response to emergencies, especially during the COVID-19 outbreak. Now aligned to regional standards, anyone in South Sudan can call 6666 to reach the call center with a health emergency.