When Ebola struck west Africa Castro sent ?an army of white coats?
One of the great legacies of the Cuban revolutions under Castro was the way in which the countries medical services improved with large numbers of Doctors, Dentists and Health care professionals trained.
Indeed in 2007 there were 42,000 Cuban support workers involved in programmes globally and of these over 30,000 were health professionals and 19,000 Doctors. By 2015 the figure was 55,000 health workers worldwide.
The country also did not shy away from providing support in the most dire of circumstances such as when the Ebola outbreak occurred in West Africa.
Indeed the Cuban effort in the fight against Ebola was so significant that even the United States acknowledged it.
US ambassador to the UN praised Cuba?s efforts:
Indeed even the main UK Tory newspaper the Daily Telegraph was fulsome in its remarks saying;
?When the World Health Organisation issued a global appeal last September for medical staff to help with the Ebola crisis, Cuba was among the first countries to respond, also sending 53 medics to Liberia and 35 to Guinea. The move has the personal backing of Fidel Castro, who made a speech proudly describing them as “an army of white coats?.
?Around 12,000 Cuban medical staff has volunteered in total – a figure that dwarfs the 1,600 British NHS workers who have agreed to do so.?
Image: Mandela and Castro in 2001:
Just a few months ago another group of Cuban doctors arrived in South Africa the continuation of a policy agreed between Nelson Mandela and Fidel Castro two decades ago
BERNARD MOFFATT
Public Relations Officer Mannin Branch
Issued by: The Mannin branch of the Celtic League.
27/11/16
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