Highlights
According to UNFPA, an estimated 800,000 women will give birth in 2015 in the three countries, but some 120,000 of them may die from lack of access to emergency obstetrics care, while health services have been diverted toward Ebola response.
In Sierra Leone, only one-fifth of the 10,000 HIV patients on anti-retroviral treatments are still receiving them due to the current lack of health personnel available for non-Ebola care.
Guinea’s government is reporting a $220 million financing gap because of the crisis.
The Ebola epidemic in West Africa is rapidly destroying lives, decimating communities, and orphaning children in the affected countries. However, death and suffering are only part of the crisis. If the outbreak is not contained soon, most of the economic and social gains achieved since peace was restored in Liberia and Sierra Leone and Guinea’s democratic transition began could be reversed. In October, the disease also appeared in Mali, where authorities, assisted by the United Nations and other partners, are now working to prevent its spread.
The epidemic is slowing down economic growth and closing down businesses, affecting the means of making a living of millions of the poorest and most vulnerable people in the region. It is also putting pressure on government budgets, limiting their capacity to provide basic services for their populations. In addition, the crisis is eroding trust among communities, stigmatizing victims and survivors, and destroying confidence in health and government services. A vast coalition of partners is now mobilized to help affected countries end the disease. At the same time, the challenge is to help those countries and communities recover from the long-term impact of the crisis.
What is UNDP doing?
UNDP’s response to the crisis is focusing on three priorities:
Coordination and service delivery
As part of the overall UNMEER and UN response, we are the lead UN agency on the coordination of payments to Ebola workers. UNDP will help to track payments and improve the systems through which they are being delivered to treatment center staff, lab technicians, contacts tracers and burial teams.
Community mobilization and outreach
We are working with communities, through local leaders and networks of volunteers, to identify cases, trace contacts and educate people on how the disease is spread and how to avoid contracting it. We are also raising awareness, including among People Living With Disabilities, of how important it is to fight stigma, reintegrate survivors and support their families.
Socio-economic impact and recovery
UNDP economists have been assessing the development impact of Ebola. Findings from the impact studies have resulted in a series of policy notes on the disease’s impact on fiscal space and development spending, which will be used to inform recovery plans. As part of our early recovery efforts, UNDP will also make welfare payments to vulnerable communities affected by the disease, focusing on survivors and families who lost relatives or are helping orphaned children, as well as those who have lost their livelihoods as a result of the crisis.