Coming back from Ebola
Long and difficult road ahead for the people of Liberia
For nearly 18 months, life ground to a halt in Liberia. The Ebola virus not only ravaged the people, but robbed them of their ability to provide for their families. The deadly disease took away more than people’s health; businesses and schools closed, flights in and out of the country were suspended, and to those inside the country, there was a sense of abandonment from the international community.
As the economy began to deteriorate and people fled the region, the Liberia Council of Churches stayed to pray with families and seek help for those in need. One of the council’s biggest challenges has been the thousands of children orphaned by the virus.
“People are afraid of the children and don’t want to be near them, even though the disease is now gone” said the Rev. Kortu Brown, first vice president of the council. “This will be a long road to recovery for the children because of their trauma.”
Brown says the stigma of the virus has lingered and the sense of abandonment is strong. Meantime, the council works to provide school for the children as the country begins to recover.
“During the Ebola crisis, we felt the ecumenical community abandoned us, especially in North America,” said Brown. “But the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) stood by us and kept the line of communication open.”
PC(USA) staff recently traveled to Liberia, meeting with Brown and other agencies working to help restore structure in the region.
“Restoring markets in Liberia is a very slow process. The people have already missed the planting and harvest seasons and the price of goods and services is very high,” said Luke Asikoye, associate with International Disaster Response in the PC (USA). “Unemployment was high before Ebola and this has just compounded the problem.”
The three programs supported by the One Great Hour of Sharing Offering (Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, the Presbyterian Committee on the Self-Development of People and the Presbyterian Hunger Program) have been working together to help both Liberia and Sierra Leone rebuild and rehabilitate. The West Africa Initiative (WAI) grew out of the collaboration in 2007 following years of civil war in the region.Later, the United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR), the United Church of Christ (UCC) and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) joined the effort.
Its goal is to improve food security and the economic status of individuals, families and communities, develop and strengthen community-based organizations and develop the technical and management capabilities of the Council of Churches.
While progress to restore the region is slow, church officials remain confident that the countries are better prepared to handle medical emergencies than they were before. Efforts to educate people on how to become self-sustainable in the midst of an economic crisis also continue.