With the emphasis on coverage from African media.
We begin with that rare bit of news from the lighter side, via the London Telegraph:
Ebola not spread by zombies, says minister
International Development Minister Desmond Swayne tells the Commons a constituent believed zombies were responsible for the escalation of ebola
International Development Minister Desmond Swayne has dismissed concerns that Ebola is spread by zombies.
The Tory front-bencher told the Commons he had to enlighten a constituent who believed zombies were responsible for the escalation of the killer virus.
But Mr Swayne noted the “irony” of Ebola is that people are capable of causing infection when they are dead.
More new on the bright side from Voice of America:
Officials: Number of New Ebola Cases in W. Africa Declining
The good news from West Africa began trickling in last week.
The Ebola coordinator at the Guinean Health Ministry said Tuesday in Paris that the numbers of new cases are declining in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea.
Guinean Health Ministry official Aboubakar Sidiki Diakite said, “The figures are declining because the number of confirmed cases that we had in health care centers, the number also of suspected cases that we had in health care centers, these figures are starting to decline – not in a very significant way, but we realize that these figures are decreasing.”
In Liberia’s capital, Monrovia, a United Nations official in charge of emergency Ebola response confirmed there has been a significant improvement in the fight against the deadly disease.
According to Wednesday’s World Health Organization Ebola Response Roadmap Situation Report [PDF], 13,015 people have contracted Ebola, of whom 4808 have died.
Two contrasting graphics [click on them to enlarge] illustrate the report’s good news and bad. First, the hopeful Bell Curves in Liberia and its capital, Monrovia:
While the ongoing misery continues to accelerate in Sierra Leone and its capital, Freetown:
From BBC News, a deplorable lack:
Ebola outbreak: UN ‘lacks resources’ to fight deadly virus
The head of the UN mission charged with fighting Ebola in West Africa has told the BBC he does not yet have the resources necessary to defeat it.
Tony Banbury said more help was urgently needed, despite significant contributions from the UK, China, Cuba and the US.
But he was hopeful of achieving the target of 70% bed space for new cases and 70% safe burials by December.
The confirmed death toll is now 4,818, says the World Health Organization. The numbers are down since the WHO previously reported figures last Friday, as it says it has changed the way the figures are collated.
But it said in the countries worst affected by the outbreak – Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea – transmission remained “persistent and widespread, particularly in the capital cities”.
Putting politicians on the spot with before the congressional red shift, via the New York Times:
Obama to Ask Congress for $6 Billion to Fight Ebola
President Obama is asking Congress for just over $6 billion in emergency funding to combat Ebola in West Africa and protect Americans from the virus in the United States, an administration official said Wednesday.
The request comes just after the midterm congressional elections on Tuesday in which Republicans took control of the Senate, dealing devastating losses to Democrats across the country and a rebuke to Mr. Obama that will complicate his efforts to advance his agenda.
The White House described the proposal as a chance for collaboration between the president and Capitol Hill.
And a question from National Journal:
Is Ebola Funding One Thing the White House and Congress Can Agree On?
With a new $6 billion request to Congress, the administration sure hopes so
Tensions are high between the White House and Congress following Tuesday’s elections, but the Obama administration is confident it’s found one area where Democrats and Republicans can still work together: fighting Ebola.
In a huge scale-up in funding requests, the administration is asking Congress for $6.18 billion in emergency funding for the federal government’s Ebola response efforts. And administration officials remain optimistic that a deal will be worked out—fast.
“It’s clear to us thus far that this is being taken seriously as an emergency,” said Office of Management and Budget Director Shaun Donovan on Thursday. “We’ve been pleased so far with the engagement seen on both sides of the aisle.”
AJ+, Al Jazeera America’s new YouTube channel, covers another sad reality:
Why Pharmaceutical Companies Are Ignoring Tropical Diseases Like Ebola
Program notes:
Only 1% of medicines developed in the last 40 years were made to fight tropical diseases. Ethan Guillen, from Universities Allied for Essential Medicines, explains why it’s no mistake that these diseases have been neglected.
The run for the cure with the Associated Press:
US officials unveil plan to test Ebola drugs
The quest for an Ebola treatment is picking up speed. Federal officials have unveiled a plan to test multiple drugs at once, in an umbrella study with a single comparison group to give fast answers on what works.
“This is novel for us” and is an approach pioneered by cancer researchers, said Dr. Luciana Borio, head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Ebola response. “We need to learn what helps and what hurts” and speed treatments to patients, she said.
She outlined the plan Wednesday at an American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene conference in New Orleans. Thousands of scientists have crowded into day and late-night sessions on Ebola, which has killed 5,000 West Africans this year.
One promising entrant from NBC News:
Nose Spray Ebola Vaccine Protects Monkeys
A needle-free Ebola vaccine protects monkeys 100 percent of the time from the virus, even a year after they’ve been vaccinated, researchers reported Monday.
The vaccine uses a common cold virus genetically engineered to carry a tiny piece of Ebola DNA. Sprayed up the nose, it saved all nine monkeys tested for infection.
But now the research is dead in the water without funding, Maria Croyle of the University of Texas at Austin’s College of Pharmacy said.
“Now we are at the crossroads, trying to figure out where to get the funding and resources to continue,” Croyle told NBC News.
A Spanish healer healed, via El País:
“I don’t know what went wrong, or if anything went wrong”
Nursing assistant who contracted Ebola speaks after doctors discharge her
Medical team admits they can’t pinpoint what cured Teresa Romero
The Spanish nursing assistant who became the first person outside of West Africa to contract Ebola appeared before the press on Wednesday morning after being discharged from hospital. After more than a month of treatment, Teresa Romero has been given the definitive all-clear by her medical team.
An emotional but at all times in control Romero appeared before a press scrum at Carlos III Hospital in Madrid, where she spent nearly the whole of October in isolation. Also present at the press conference was her husband Javier Limón.
“I’m here to give you my thanks, but I’m still very weak,” Romero said, before reading a statement in which she thanked her doctors, her family and the public for their messages and letters of support.
“I don’t know what went wrong,” she said in reference to her infection. “I don’t even know if something did go wrong. All I know is that I’m not bitter and I’m not blaming anyone.”
From CBC News’s The National, deplorable and deplored:
World Health Organization condemns Canada’s freeze on visas from Ebola affected countries
Program notes:
WHO demanded Canada justify the move that few other nations have made.
Profit potential from Want China Times:
Ebola outbreak sends demand for protective gear rocketing
As China sends more aid to Ebola-plagued West Africa, medical equipment suppliers are rushing to meet the soaring global demand for protective products.
Protective gear such as coveralls, gloves and goggles are essential supplies in the battle against the deadly virus, with Chinese suppliers seeing a wave of orders from concerned countries.
Gao Yan, a sales manager of Crown Name Disposable Hygiene Products, based in Hubei province, said since the outbreak of the epidemic, the firm has received an influx of inquiries on orders. “People are calling from everywhere, asking whether we have anything in stock,” Gao told Xinhua at the Canton Fair, the country’s largest trade event.
Aid money, via the Associated Press:
Ebola countries to get $450 million in financing
A new private sector initiative announced Wednesday will provide at least $450 million in commercial financing to the three West African countries hardest hit by Ebola to promote trade, investment and employment.
The International Finance Corporation, which is part of the World Bank Group, announced that the package will include $250 million in rapid response projects and at least $200 million in investment projects to support the economic recovery of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea after the Ebola outbreak is controlled.
The announcement coincides with the U.N. Development Program’s release of a study on the socio-economic impact of the outbreak, which found that the governments of the three countries need $328 million to be able to function at pre-crisis levels. The study said the shortfalls are caused by increased spending to tackle Ebola and the slowdown of economic activity in fields such as tourism, mining and trade.
More aid, via Reuters:
EU scheme commits $350 mln for research on Ebola vaccines, tests
The Europe Union and drugmakers pledged on Thursday to invest 280 million euros ($350 million) in Ebola research, with the lion’s share going to the testing and manufacture of potential vaccines.
The funding will go to projects backed by the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI), a public-private scheme jointly paid for by the European Commission and the pharmaceuticals industry.
Reuters reported on Oct. 22 that an IMI investment of around 200 million euros was pending. Since then, further discussions have been held about the resources needed for various projects and the amount has been increased.
The final document setting out the plans commits the European Commission to giving as much as 140 million euros, with companies providing an equivalent amount in staff time, goods and services.
Aid by the Like from the Star in Nairobi, Kenya:
Facebook launches Ebola charity donation button
Facebook Inc said users would now have option to donate directly to various Ebola relief charities through a button at the top of their News Feeds.
Facebook users can donate to three charities – International Medical Corps, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, and Save the Children – starting today, the company said on its website on Thursday. (http://bit.ly/1pqeRUq)
The social media company is also donating 100 terminals to provide internet and voice-calling access for aid workers to Ebola-hit areas such as Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
Help from above via SciDev.Net:
Space agency alliance joins the struggle against Ebola
An international collaboration of space agencies that provides free satellite imagery and data to assist disaster responses is now supporting efforts to control the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa.
When the International Charter on Space and Major Disasters was activated on 9 October it was the first time it had been triggered in response to a disease outbreak.
The charter has previously only been activated to help map areas in response to natural disasters such as typhoons.
In the Ebola context, satellite data could assist attempts to find out where the virus originated and help produce maps useful for coordinating medical responses.
Japanese precautions from the Asahi Shimbun:
Ministries move to quell fears over Ebola with new policy
To avoid creating public hysteria over the spread of the Ebola virus, information on arriving passengers suspected to be carriers of the deadly disease will be promptly disclosed.
The health and land ministries decided on the policy change following a case late last month in which a passenger arrived in Tokyo showing signs of fever, but later tested negative.
The ministries said Nov. 4 they will immediately release information on potential victims of the virus, including age bracket, gender and specific symptoms, as well as the air carrier and flight number of the aircraft the individual used.
Previously, the government would only disclose such information after a passenger was confirmed to be infected.
And from News Corp Australia, barely horrified:
Ebola scare on nudist beach as refugees turn up on Canary Islands with fever
HOLIDAYING nudists on a Spanish beach fled when a boatload of sick refugees from Africa decided to make a surprise visit.
Local media reports the migrants were kept huddled together while Red Cross workers cordoned off the area and began taking temperatures while wearing protective gear.
A number of the 17 men and two women showed signs of fever including one who had a temperature of 40 degrees. Some said they were from Guinea and Sierra Leone – both Ebola hotspots.
After a few hours, the authorities used a dump truck to collect the group from Maspalomas beach and take them away to a holding centre, which angered some locals. None of the refugees tested positive for the deadly virus, but four were taken to hospital with other health issues.
Replacement at the top from the New York Times:
Amid Ebola Disaster, WHO Picks New Africa Chief
With nearly 5,000 dead of Ebola in West Africa, the World Health Organization elected a new director Wednesday of its Africa office, which has been accused of bungling the response to the outbreak in its early stages.
The new chief, Matshidiso Moeti, is a doctor from Botswana and a WHO veteran who stepped down as deputy director for Africa in March, the same month the crisis was announced.
The results of the five-candidate election were made public at a meeting of the U.N. agency in Benin and came amid the worst outbreak of the dreaded disease ever seen.
And a plea from the Vanguard in Lagos, Nigeria:
W.Africa urges tourists to keep visiting despite Ebola
West African tourist chiefs urged travellers on Wednesday not to boycott their region because of the Ebola crisis, insisting that the epidemic was only affecting three countries in a vast continent.
“Africa is not a country, Africa is a continent,” said Ola Wright, the chief executive of West Africa Tourism, warning that fear over Ebola in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone was having a damaging impact on neighbouring countries.
The deadly virus has brought an abrupt and indefinite halt to international tourism in those three affected countries, where almost 5,000 people have died in the outbreak.
But tourism has been affected across the region and even in east and southern Africa, which are thousands of miles (kilometres) away and have not reported Ebola cases.
After the jump, West Africa mobilizes regional defenses and names a coordinator, an educational campaign in Mali, then on to Sierra Leone where things are getting worse, a chief cries for help, new treatment centers open, Australia finally vows to send medical help to staff a new British-built treatment center [but there’s less to the vow than meets the eye or ear], presidential pleas for help and food, disturbing allegations, and a crackdown on the press amidst hints of a coming crackdown, thence onward to Liberia with the press also under siege, America opens a new treatment center for sick medical workers only, China prepares to build a treatment center, life begins to return to normal as clubbing rebounds — but beach goers are threatened with “severe floggings,” U.S. medics to treat Ebola patients directly, food aid stolen, major public awareness campaigns underway, a deplorable lack of infrastructure, and a plea for investors to return, on to Guinea and advice ignored, thence to Nigeria and reassurance aplenty. . .
Organizing, via StarAfrica:
ECOWAS Ebola conference opens in Accra
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has begun a two-day conference in the Ghanaian capital Accra on the latest situation surrounding the Ebola epidemic ravaging the region.The meeting is being attended by heads of state from the region, Health Ministers, officials of the World Health Organisation (WHO) and civil society groups.
Speaking at the opening session on Thursday, President John Mahama said the current spread of the disease suggests that it is no longer an African crisis but a global problem requiring a robust international response to contain it.
President Mahama observed that although the international community was slow to react in the early stages of the epidemic, major global players like China, the United States, and European Union countries have made significant contributions of food, equipment, funds and personnel toward containing the dreadful disease.
The first result of the meeting, via Reuters:
West African leaders name Togo’s president to lead Ebola response
West African leaders on Thursday appointed Togolese President Faure Gnassingbe to supervise the region’s efforts to contain the deadly Ebola epidemic, which has killed nearly 5,000 people, mostly in the region.
The leaders who gathered in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, called for accelerated efforts to make vaccines available against the disease, which has infected some 13,567 people in eight countries.
Organisations should prioritise the provision of vaccines at subsidized prices to the affected countries, as well as others, they said in a communique after reviewing the impact of the disease in the region.
Educating in Mali with CCTV America:
Mali public awareness campaign aims to increase understanding of Ebola
Program notes:
Authorities in Mali have undertaken an intense public awareness campaign about Ebola.
Newspapers, TV and radio broadcasts have carried the message to millions. Yet the message is still not reaching everyone. CCTV’s Robert Nagila reported this story from Mali.
On to Sierra Leone where things are getting worse, via Vice News:
The Ebola Outbreak Is Getting Worse in Sierra Leone
While infection rates for the Ebola virus seem to be on the decline in Liberia, the World Health Organization’s most recent situation report on the ongoing outbreak in West Africa confirms fears that cases are on the rise in Sierra Leone.
In just the past 21 days, Sierra Leone registered 1,174 confirmed, suspected, or probable cases of Ebola, while Liberia tallied 398, and Guinea registered 256. According to WHO, “intense transmission” in Freetown is a contributing factor to the rise. The capital city reported 115 cases in the last week.
The continued outbreak in the northern district of Koinadugu, which until October had managed to keep the deadly virus at bay with a quarantine policy, is also cause for concern. According to the Red Cross, more than 60 people in Koinadugu have been infected by the virus.
A chief cries for help, via the Guardian:
Ebola outbreak in Koinadugu, Sierra Leone, prompts call for help from chief
At least 25 people have died and 38 believed to be infected in district previously unaffected by virus
The leader of a remote chiefdom in Sierra Leone has called for urgent help to contain Ebola, which is causing fear and panic in his community.
The fresh outbreak of Ebola in Koinadugu, a district previously unaffected by the virus, has affected more than 60 people in a small chiefdom close to Guinea, the Red Cross has said.
The head of Sierra Leone’s Red Cross team, John Mara, told the Guardian that at least 25 people had died and 38 people were believed to be infected after lab results proved positive for 15 more patients. Two of those buried had died on Tuesday, including a seven-year-old girl.
Koinadugu had prided itself on being the only district in Sierra Leone to have been Ebola-free after local chiefs imposed a quarantine, barring travel and creating a system of official distribution vans and trucks to help farmers and traders get their product to neighbouring markets.
And a presidential plea from StarAfrica:
Sierra Leonean leader appeals for local leadership in Ebola fight
Sierra Leonean President Ernest Bai Koroma has given local traditional leaders a 21-day ultimatum to ensure progress in the fight against the Ebola disease.
At a frank discussion with traditional and religious leaders, elected officials and government ministers in Freetown on Tuesday, the President said this is the second phase of the battle against the deadly epidemic, considering the country is having all the outside help now.
The meeting was a continuation of consultations by President Koroma with leaders in parts of the country hardest hit by the disease. The Western Area, which Freetown is a part of, currently has the highest number of cases and rapidly growing.
Despite all efforts being made, the Western Area is swelling up with (Ebola) cases, the President lamented. He added that the “final push” against the epidemic requires that everyone works hard.
A treatment center opens, via StarAfrica:
Sierra Leone inaugurates new Ebola treatment centre
A new treatment centre built by the UK government at Kerry Town, near Freetown has been inaugurated by Sierra Leonean officials.The centre is specifically built for treating the dreaded Ebola virus disease in the western region of the country where the disease is said to be spreading rapidly.
Until now, all patients from the region have been taken to the eastern region where overcrowded centres have helped to aggravate the epidemic that continues to spread across the country.
More than 1000 people have died so far in Sierra Leone alone out of about 5000 cases since the epidemic crossed over from Guinea and then Liberia.
The Kerry Town centre is a 80-bed centre for the treatment of sick people from the general population, while a 12-bed centre will house health workers and international workers helping in the Ebola fight, who may be infected with the virus.
From the Associated Press, an Aussie declaration:
Australia to staff Ebola hospital in Sierra Leone
Australia’s prime minister said Wednesday that his government expects to staff a British-built Ebola hospital in Sierra Leone by the end of the month after reaching a deal with Britain on treating Australian health workers who might become infected with the deadly disease.
For weeks, Australia has refused requests from the United States and Britain to send health teams to West Africa to fight Ebola, which has killed almost 5,000 people, mostly in the worst-hit countries of Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea.
But Prime Minister Tony Abbott said Wednesday that while his government would not compel Australian health professionals to go Africa, it was now prepared to pay the way for doctors and nurses who volunteer to go there.
But questions soon arise, via BBC News:
Australia to contract private medical firm to fight Ebola
Australia is contracting a private company to staff and operate an Ebola treatment centre in Sierra Leone, Prime Minister Tony Abbot has said.
He said Australia would commit A$20m (£11m; $17m) to a 100-bed treatment centre being built by the UK.
But he ruled out sending government health workers – most workers would be hired locally with international staff likely to include some Australians.
Event though volunteers Down Under are eager to go, via the Guardian:
Ebola contractor says only 10% of Sierra Leone staff will be Australians
Aspen Medical says it has been already approached by 350 volunteers but only 25 to 50 Australians would go at a time
The private company contracted to run an Ebola treatment centre in Sierra Leone expects the workforce to include about 25 to 50 Australians at any one time.
The Abbott government, under pressure to provide practical assistance to containing the Ebola virus in west Africa, pledged funding of $20m to enable the Australian firm Aspen Medical to operate a 100-bed health centre in one of the worst-affected countries.
Up to 240 people will be required to run the centre and Aspen Medical said it expected some 10% to 20% of the team to come from Australia.
Another presidential plea, via StarAfrica:
S/Leonean leader appeals for prompt food supply to quarantined communities
Sierra Leonean President Ernest Bai Koroma on Wednesday made a strong case for prompt and regular food supply to quarantine communities, so that the country`s efforts to contain the spread of the Ebola epidemic are not affected negatively.
President Koroma was speaking at a meeting with the visiting Executive Director of the World Food Program, Ertharin Cousin, in Freetown. Over two million people across five districts in the country are under quarantine after rapid spread of the virus was discovered in their regions.
A disturbing allegation from StarAfrica:
S/Leone: WFP accused of supplying ‘expired’ food to quarantine communities
Sierra Leone’s All Political Parties Association (APPA) has accused the World Food Program of supplying expired and substandard food to communities under quarantine for the Ebola epidemic.The accusations were leveled against the UN food agency at a press conference in Freetown on Wednesday.
They came at the end of what the group called a preliminary fact-finding mission to communities under quarantine in some of the country`s hard-hit Ebola districts.
The group comprises members from ten functional political parties in the country, and it`s part of a three-month project under the Political Parties Registration Commission.
From the Guardian, repression strikes the Fourth Estate:
Sierra Leone: Journalist arrested after questioning official Ebola response
David Tam Baryoh was arrested under emergency regulations as Ebola-hit governments crack down on protest and criticism
A journalist in Sierra Leone who has criticised the government’s handling of the Ebola outbreak was allegedly beaten then jailed under emergency laws meant to help bring the epidemic under control.
David Tam Baryoh, a high-profile radio journalist whose reports have often needled officials, is being detained at the maximum-security Pademba Road prison in the capital Freetown. His popular weekly programme, Monologue, was taken off air mid-show last week as he interviewed an opposition party spokesman who criticised the president’s alleged intentions to run for a third term. During that show Baryoh also questioned arrests made in Kono, an eastern district put under curfew in October when a dispute between youths and police over a suspected case of Ebola degenerated into gunfire and rioting.
Legislators in Sierra Leone threatened to gag the media over their coverage of the controversial allocation in September of 60m leones (£8,620) to each MP to boost Ebola awareness in their constituencies. In Liberia, the hardest-hit country, police last month used batons and whips to disperse protesters as lawmakers debated a request to extend president Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s powers beyond the already sweeping ones accorded by the state of emergency declared in August.
And hints of a coming crackdown from StarAfrica:
Sierra Leone’s Ebola response head denies lock down rumours
The Chief Executive Officer of Sierra Leone’s National Ebola Response Center (NERC) has denied persistent reports of another imminent nationwide lockdown as “rumours”.
Major Paulo Conte (rtd) said the government had not considered any such move even though they were aware of growing calls for it.
Given the continued spread of the Ebola virus, some people have suggested that a repeat of last August’s controversial nationwide shutdown would be necessary to seek out infected people and limit, if not stop, the flow of transmission at community levels.
But Major Conte who was only recently deployed from the Defence ministry to champion the national anti-Ebola effort said Thursday a lot goes into preparing for a lock down and that the situation does not exist at the moment.
On to Liberia and an appeal from a beleaguered Fourth Estate via the Monrovia Inquirer:
Media Group Seeking Signatures For PUL Prexy’s Removal
A group of Liberian journalists has begun a campaign to remove the Press Union of Liberia (PUL) President, AbdullaiKamara.
The move by the group of journalists is predicated upon the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Government of Liberia through the Ministry of Information and the Press Union of Liberia.
Reading the statement yesterday at the Press Union office, FabineKwiah noted that signing the Memorandum of Understanding, Mr. Kamara has subjected media institutions in the country to government control and regulation in line with a 1980 military decree designed for the suppression of the independent media.
“In the same Memorandum of Understanding of 22 October, 2014, Mr. Kamara unconstitutionally, unconventionally and unilaterally committed the media to the government’s Ebola policy regardless of its nature, thus denying room for critique and investigation for the greater good of the society, “ she stated.
Ms. Kwiah further read, “Mr. Kamara’s action and decision to sign the said MOU has reinforced the government’s repressive media agenda, darkening the already fragile media economy, now that the Ministry of Information is demanding registration payments from media houses as precondition for operation”.
Uncle Sam offers help for helpers, via the Washington Post:
U.S. field hospital for health workers to open in Liberia
The first U.S. Ebola treatment facility in West Africa is designed to inspire confidence that health workers who become infected would receive top-quality care, including intravenous hydration, electrolyte replacement, quick lab results and any necessary drugs in a clean, air-conditioned environment.
All that is available near Monrovia’s main airport in a series of tents like the ones used for field hospitals in combat zones, staffed by 69 members of the Public Health Service. An Ebola diagnosis can be made in three hours at a nearby lab run by the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, based at Fort Detrick, Md.
According to the World Health Organization, 546 health-care workers are among the 13,042 suspected, probable or confirmed cases of Ebola in eight countries; 310 health workers have died.
And China ramps up assistance, via the Guardian:
China to build Ebola hospital in Liberia
Government announces plan to send 1,000 aid workers to Africa and open 100-bed medical centre within a month
China plans to build a 100-bed medical centre in Liberia to combat Ebola, officials announced on Thursday, after criticism that the country is not doing enough to fight the disease.
China will send 1,000 aid workers to Ebola-affected areas “in the months to come”, and has already sent 252 people to the three hardest-hit countries – Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone – since the deadly virus broke out in March, the official newswire Xinhua reported on Wednesday.
Foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei elaborated on the announcement at a regular press conference on Thursday afternoon. “In Liberia, we will build a 100-bed medical centre,” he said. “On 9 November, 160 medical workers will set off for Liberia.” He added that 320 additional workers would arrive at the centre at a later date.
U.S. medics to treat Ebola patients directly, via USA Today:
U.S. uniformed officers to treat Ebola patients in Liberia
President Obama has assured Americans that none of the nearly 4,000 U.S. troops heading to Liberia will treat Ebola patients, but 70 uniformed officers of the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps will.
The corps, part of the Department of Health and Human Services, will open a clinic outside the Liberian capital, Monrovia, this weekend and is tasked with treating Liberian doctors and nurses who contract the deadly disease. It is the first time U.S. government personnel have been given that assignment, although all volunteered.
For those local medical personnel willing to treat Ebola patients — among the most dangerous of jobs — the new clinic is a means of support, Rear Adm. Scott Giberson, acting U.S. deputy surgeon general, said Wednesday in a phone interview from Liberia.
From the NewDawn, food aid stolen:
Another burglary in Ebola Treatment Center
Another burglary has reportedly occurred at the Ebola Treatment Center in Nimba County with assorted food items donated by the World Food Programme allegedly stolen. Report from the county says for the second time in less than a month unknown individuals have burglarized the ETU warehouse and stolen food kept there for Ebola patients.
The Administrative Assistant to the Mayor of Sanniquellie, James F. Barkar, said the food, donated by the WFP, had been stored in the warehouse for some time, but suspected thieves broken into the administrative building in Sanniquellie and took away huge quantity of supplies.
Mr. Barkar, who refused to clearly state how much quantity of food was stolen, told The NewDawn correspondent in Nimba that the unknown robbers broken into the premises through the rear of the Administrative building. Nimba County Superintendent Fong Zuagele has reportedly ordered an investigation into the matter, but police have made no arrest.
Bouncing back with the Washington Post:
As Ebola infections drop, Liberian capital reawakens
On a dirt field between two tall plum trees, barefoot young women played a surprisingly ferocious game of kickball one evening this week. Sweating in the heat and humidity despite the approach of dusk, they battled with the pent-up energy of teens who have been stuck at home too long.
A crowd of 100, maybe more, gathered to watch. Huge speakers blared the Ghanain hip-hop of Sargo D, making conversation nearly impossible. The spectators stood closely together. Some danced, some moved more subtly to the music. Had there been food and drink, this gathering in Monrovia’s Capitol Hill neighborhood could have been a block party.
Barely six or seven weeks ago, it also would have been impossible.
But with a warning, via the NewDawn:
Beach goers risk severe flogging
The Government of Liberia has threatened to drastically deal with those in the constant habit of going to beaches and night clubs during this deadly Ebola outbreak.
Deputy Information Minister, Isaac Jackson, said Liberians, who have already planned to go on the various beaches to mark the late President William V.S Tubman’s birth anniversary on November 29 will receive a severe flogging from the Liberia National Police.
Speaking Tuesday in Monrovia at a regular press briefing, Minister Jackson said the Government has empowered the police to take drastic action against citizens that will be caught on the various beaches across the country, especially in Monrovia.
He observed that most Liberians have been caught violating the Government’s regulation by going to night clubs after 6:00PM. He said, though spiritual leaders are in the fight against Ebola, they need to do more by allowing two or three worshippers sit in a pew or bench in the Church. The Deputy Minister also recommended that Churches should conduct two services on Sunday to avoid over crowdedness, and also allow more members to go to Church.
Major public awareness campaigns underway, via the Inquirer:
Sime Darby, IFRC To Raise Ebola Awareness
The International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) and Liberia Red Cross (LRC) have reached out to more than 400,000 people in Liberia in its efforts to battle the Ebola Virus Disease (EVD).
The awareness programme, which is supported by Sime Darby Plantation Liberia (SDPL), includes community engagement and psychosocial support. This covers various counties including Grand Cape Mount and Bomi, where SDPL operates.
In August 2014, SDPL responded to IFRC’s emergency appeal on the Ebola virus outbreak. The main objective of the partnership is to support IFRC in their expansion efforts to contain the outbreak through awareness programmes. This includes on-ground collaboration to extend facilities and training of SDPL workers, their families and the surrounding communities.
More awareness from StarAfrica:
Liberia campaigns against citizens’ Ebola stigmatization
Liberia’s Foreign minister Augustine Ngafuan has said the government is embarking on a campaign abroad on behalf of its citizens suffering stigmatization in their host countries due to the Ebola pandemic. Speaking during a daily Ebola press briefing in Monrovia Wednesday, Ngafuan said: “Disturbing reports emanating from abroad speak of Liberians being stigmatized and discriminated against because of the current crisis in the country”.
He however assured the victims of stigmatization that the government will explore all available diplomatic options such as the use of diplomatic notes, ambassadorial missions as well as the community of foreign ministers and leaders to protect Liberians from mistreatment.
Ngafuan said the Liberian government has over the past months protested unnecessary restrictions and stigmatization through a variety of channels including direct diplomatic contacts to the countries involved.
And from Heritage, a saddening lack:
4 fire trucks to 3.5 Million people
The Director General of the Liberia National Fire Service, G. Warsuwah Barvoul, Sr., has disclosed that his institution has only four fire trucks and a pickup nationwide.
According to Mr. Barvoul, the pickup and three of the four trucks are stationed in Montserrado, while the one truck is stationed in Grand Bassa County.
This suggests that the other 13 counties are without a single fire truck.
The LNFS boss was speaking recently at a news conference held at the Ministry of Information, Cultural Affairs and Tourism (MICAT).
And another plea, via the NewDawn:
Liberia asks investors to return
Government of Liberia is appealing for the return of investors, companies and contractors that halted operations and left the country due to the Ebola crisis, reminding that “the period of forced-manjure” has ended.
Liberia’s Health Minister Dr. Walter Gwenigale, told a recent Development Alliance meeting chaired by President Johnson-Sirleaf that Liberia now has “excess beds”, as vehicles are coming and burial teams can quickly pull out sick people that need medication.
“…Because of the intervention by our government and the people who have come to help us, we think that the disease is going down”, he told the LDA meeting in the C. Cecil Dennis Auditorium at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday, 5 November.
As the Government solicits private companies’ support, President Sirleaf says a long period of time has passed and Liberia’s climate only allows six months of work in the energy and infrastructure areas per year, which she fears the country risks losing entirely if work is not done timely this dry season.
On to Guinea and advice ignored, via the Guardian:
Ebola in Guinea: reggae plays on in Gueckedou as clubbers try to relax
Amid the epidemic, young people are carrying on dancing at the Fatou Rose hotel, putting Red Cross health advice to one side and trusting in chlorinated water
On a Saturday night recently two teenagers, David and Fofana, defied their parents’ orders to stay at home and slipped out as night enveloped the rice fields. They hitched rides on the back of motorbikes that brought them towards the bright lights of one of the few clubs still open in Gueckedou.
What elsewhere would be an act of youthful rebellion, was a chance to remember the way things used to be before Ebola came to Guinea. For a few hours, music could sweep away the grief and fear stalking alongside the disease that has killed almost 5,000 people across west Africa since the outbreak began in this market town in the lush hinterlands of the country.
“Nobody goes out here any more because our health is the biggest concern. But we wanted to have a laugh tonight, for once, because it’s the weekend,” said David, 17.
And reassurance aplenty from Punch Nigeria:
Lagos can tackle any disease, Fashola tells investors
Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola, says the state has the capacity to combat any infectious disease, including the Ebola Virus Disease, should it rear its ugly head again.
The governor therefore told foreigners willing to visit or invest in the country that Lagos State, having successfully curbed the EVD was now safe and free from all infectious diseases.
Fashola, who was represented by his Deputy, Adejoke Orelope-Adefulire, said this during a programme tagged, ‘Lagos Welcomes Visitors’ organised by the Lagos State Ministry of Tourism in conjunction with the state’s Ministry of Health.
To close, idiocy ends in apology from AllAfrica:
Africa: Russian Coach Apologises for Racist Comments – Report
An African Union team of 40 health workers is about to leave for Ebola-hit Guinea, the organisation announced on Wednesday.
It added that the European Union said two of its commissioners would visit the affected countries.
According to AU, the team includes doctors, laboratory experts, data analysts and communication experts from Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, Niger and Zimbabwe.
It added that they would depart on Thursday.
