MTN Joins Effort to Tackle Health Rumours in South Sudan

(JUBA) – MTN South Sudan, the World Health Organization and UNICEF have together supported the training of health call centre operators to speed up disease alerts and give callers faster access to trusted information.

The three day training was led by the National Public Health Institute. It gave operators practical skills to handle community feedback, respond to rumours with correct information, and quickly pass on public health alerts for checking and action.

Telecommunications giant  MTN took part by sharing its own experience in call centre operations.

The mobile operator offered lessons in customer care, workforce management, quality assurance and performance management.

Organisers WHO South Sudan thanked MTN for showing strong corporate social responsibility and said its knowledge would help improve the quality of service delivered through the call centre.

WHO and UNICEF provided support alongside the National Public Health Institute to equip operators with the tools they need to manage public concerns.

For callers, the training means quicker access to trusted health information and faster reporting of suspected disease events. It also means a stronger early warning system to help protect communities from Bundibugyo Virus Disease, cholera, mpox, measles and other epidemic prone diseases affecting South Sudan.

A statement released by the World Health Organisation (South Sudan), the organisation running the training said every call, concern and alert matters.

The effort is part of building a stronger public health system that listens, acts and helps keep South Sudan safe, according to the National Public Health Institute.