Training for communications personnel at the Health Emergency Operations Center (COES) in Equatorial Guinea.

We are strengthening actions to improve our response to public health emergencies.

The communications staff of the Emergency Health Operations Center (COES) received key training to improve the response to emergencies and public health crises. This initiative is part of the project “Strengthening the capacities of the National Health System and citizens to respond to health emergencies and crises,” funded by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID).

 

The activity developed during the last quarter of 2025, together with the Ministry of Health, Social Welfare and Health Infrastructure (MINSABSIS) of Equatorial Guinea, had an opening ceremony on the inaugural day in which the distinguished Dr. Florentino Abaga Ondo Ndoho, Director General of Public Health of MINSABSIS; Mr. Antonio Peláez Tortosa, general coordinator of Spanish Cooperation in Equatorial Guinea; Dr. Marcos Micha, director of COES; Ms. Ainhoa ​​Riestra López, coordinator of the FRS project and Dr. Ester Armela Sánchez-Crespo, physician and head of the on-call team of SUMMA 112 Madrid, responsible for providing the theoretical-practical training.

 

The activity aimed to improve the technical and operational skills of the staff responsible for receiving, managing and coordinating information in health emergencies and urgent situations, a key element to ensure a fast, effective and coordinated response from the health system.

 

During the 10 days of training sessions, participants covered topics related to communications management in health emergencies, information flows and inter-institutional coordination, handling mass casualty incidents, and the use of protocols and operational tools for decision-making in critical situations. The training combined theoretical content with practical exercises based on real-life scenarios, promoting applied learning adapted to the national context.

The activity concluded with a closing ceremony, in which certificates of participation were awarded to the 16 trained operators.

This training represents a further step in strengthening the health emergency coordination structures in Equatorial Guinea, highlighting the strategic role of communications personnel as the first link in the response chain to critical situations.