Accordingly a process has been set in motion to help the competent authorities such as the Ministry of Health, the Ghana Health Service (GHS), and the Ghanian government develop the technical and managerial skills necessary to carry out a Health Impact Assessment and to lay the foundations for the necessary policy in the Oil&Gas sector.
Based on the experience gained in the field and the international working groups involved, eni has participated in the implementation of the first phase of the process which included:
- the training of 19 professionals involved in the Oil&Gas and Natural Resources sector (including the Ministry of Health, the Ghana Health Service, universities, the respective Ministries for Energy, Health and Work, and the Petroleum Commission);
- the delivery of an HSE Master’s Degree course coordinated by eni with the University of Pisa;
- the creation of a multi-sector Core Team with 8 members specialized in various disciplines (epidemiology, toxicology, occupational health, public health, etc.)
- the preparation of a programming document which will facilitate the assessments of potential health impacts and the relative monitoring activities; this activity will take place in the second phase and preparations by the Ghanian authorities are currently underway.
Ecuador>
In Ecuador eni operates in Block 10, located in the Ecuadorian Amazon Forest where approximately 3,200 people live in various communities.
In Ecuador eni undertook a project to develop and support community health services.
Under multi-annual agreements signed with each community, eni has undertaken a community health project to develop and support a preventive and curative healthcare system in the area. Over the years the project, through its various phases (and the relative specific agreements), has produced and optimized a network of general and specialist healthcare services, both at the village level and in the nearby city, with the aim of reducing morbidity and mortality associated with endemic diseases in the local population.
2013 investments in community health*
(*) In 2013 investments in community health amounted to 2.9 milion euro.