As Ebola Lingers in Liberia, What Have We Learned?
As Ebola Lingers in Liberia, What Have We Learned?
Wade C. L. Williams
The deadly West African Ebola epidemic has largely faded from headlines, replaced by mounting concern over conflict in the Middle East, terrorism, and refugees streaming into Europe. But while Guinea and Sierra Leone were declared free of the disease in November, Monrovia saw three new cases two weeks later. At least 149 individuals who came into contact with the infected have been identified thus far, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
As Liberia, which accounted for the most fatalities during last year’s outbreak, holds its breath once more, what have we learned from the deadliest Ebola outbreak in history?
A total of 28,638 persons were infected during the 2014 epidemic, according to the WHO. Of this number, there were 11,315 deaths, though it is believed the actual number may be much higher due to underreported cases at the beginning.
The international community has been criticized for slow response from the onset. A standby-and-watch attitude by the world’s powerful nations was only disrupted after the virus entered the United States and Europe. Eleven Ebola treatment units eventually built by the U.S government only saw 28 patients, according to The New York Times.
What seems to have been most effective were interventions that strengthened existing community efforts. Locals began to take steps to fight the disease by voluntarily signing up to work at Ebola treatment units, establishing stations around the country for handwashing, and spreading awareness and guidance over the radio waves. Community leaders held town hall meetings and encouraged people not to touch a dead family member but call for help with their burial, shifting 180 degrees from traditional cultural practices to break the transmission of the disease.
The President of the Center for International Relations and Sustainable Development (CIRSD), Vuk Jeremić delivered a lecture at ADA University, Azerbaijan’s top-tier educational institution entitled "Geopolitics of the Balkans and How it Relates to the Caucasus”.
Read more
Vuk Jeremić lectures at the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna
At the invitation of the Diplomatic Academy in Vienna, one of the most prestigious and oldest schools on the European continent, CIRSD President Vuk Jeremić delivered a lecture entitled “(Geo)politics of the Balkans: The Revenge of History”, on February 7th, 2023.
Read more
Prof. Sachs: “Sanctions against Russia ineffective and contrary to international law”
CIRSD had the privilege to host one of the world’s brightest minds and most famous economists – Prof. Dr Jeffrey Sachs in a live discussion titled "The winter of Our Discontent".
Read more
Central Asia: The Age of Reform
The Center for International Relations and Sustainable Development (CIRSD) co-organized a conference on December 7, 2022, titled “Central Asia: The Age of Reform” at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna, one of the most prestigious and oldest (1754) schools in Europe.
Read more