31.10 Ebola Fight Hampered by Lack of Equipment, Poor Infrastructure: Ex-Liberian Senator
EDINBURGH, October 31 (RIA Novosti), Mark Hirst – A failure to maintain roads and vital infrastructure is hampering efforts to fight the Ebola outbreak in Liberia, former Liberian Senator Franklin Siakor told RIA Novosti.
Hospital closures and a lack of safety equipment for traditional midwives were among the main concerns being raised in his region, Siakor said Thursday.
"How do traditional birth attendants prevent themselves from getting Ebola? The hospitals were closed for a long time and even now not much is happening in any of them," he said.
"Traditional birth attendants are not allowed to operate, because of government policy. But they cannot sit back and watch their fellow women die, especially in these times when pregnant women are all afraid to go to the hospital," Siakor added.
The former senator said he was aware that medical equipment from the United States had been delivered to Liberia, but it did not appear to be reaching remote villages.
"I told them about the Ebola kits that [US President] Obama promised. But I am convinced deep down in my heart that those kits might not be available in these villages even months after they arrive in Liberia," Siakor told RIA Novosti.
He also argued that international donors should invest in infrastructure programs.
"Perhaps, instead of food aid to all at the moment, the World Food Program could support self-help road projects," Siakor suggested. "Young men could be encouraged with food for work and tools to connect their villages to construct roads that ambulances can use."
Siakor's comments come as Liberia is facing a growing political crisis resulting from the Ebola outbreak. Foreign investment, attracted to Liberia by the president, has now fled the country leading directly to business closures and the halting of road construction programs.
On Thursday the World Health Organization (WHO) said the rate of new infections in Liberia was slowing, but added that the number of confirmed Ebola cases now stood at 13,703 across West Africa. Liberia accounts for almost half of the 4,920 people killed by the disease, according to the organization.
