The Government of Burundi has delivered equipment and accessories to support the diagnosis and management of COVID-19 among the Burundian soldiers serving under the African Union Mission in Somalia, AMISOM.
The Gene Xpert Polymerase Chain Reaction, or PCR-test machine, was delivered by the government of Burundi through the Ministry of National Defence and Veterans and the Ministry of Public Health and will speed up the testing of troops – four hours instead of the previous one to five days.
The unveiling of the equipment which was done on Saturday at the Maslah Forward Operating Base also coincided with the end of specialised training for eighteen (18) military health personnel that will operate the COVID-19 diagnostic equipment.
“Knowing the dangers of COVID 19, we selected the best among us for this training,” said the battle group commander, Lt. Col. Kavamahanba Leononde at the closing ceremony for the training.
He noted that after the detailed training, all the participating health officials for the contingent should be able to give off their best to help detect and manage the spread of COVID 19.
The Senior Medical Officer of the AMISOM Burundi contingent, Capt Dr. Severin Irambona, commended the military medical team for working tirelessly to ensure timely testing of COVID-19 among the troops.
He also noted that the delivery of the diagnostic equipment would improve efficiency in delivering COVID-19 tests in AMISOM Sector 5.
“Initially, to get the PCR test results took between one to five days. Now it will take four hours to get the results which will help us mitigate the spread of COVID-19 among our troops and partners,” said Capt. Dr Irambona.
The Chief of the AMISOM Level 1 Hospital in Maslah, Capt. Ndayishimiye Emmanuel, commended the government of Burundi for their continuous support to ensure the safety and wellbeing of their troops in Somalia by delivering COVID-19 diagnostic equipment.
