Africa Responds

When the Ebola outbreak took West Africa by storm, reaching its peak in the fall of 2014, the outcome seemed bleak. Fortunately, grassroots organizations in affected countries responded swiftly to help their communities fight the outbreak. Since October 2014, we have been working to raise resources to support some of these transfomrational organizations.

We are pleased to announce that we are currently supporting a total of 10 organizations in Liberia and Sierra Leone. Your support has played a pivotal role in helping us reach this milestone. Here are some highlights from what our partners have been working on in their communities:

FACE AFRICA in Liberia

As one of the few organizations that has been able to reach communities in rural Rivercress county of Liberia, FACE Africa initially worked to support the local County Health Team in a widespread Ebola safety campaign focused on hygiene kits and community awareness-raising. When schools re-opened in March, FACE Africa launched its Back to School initiative, targeting 26 schools, helping to create a safe school environment for the district’s 2,345 students. The organization has provided 3,000 hygiene kits to 3,000 households across Rivercess, trained over 100 teachers and community leaders, and established isolation units and hand-washing stations in 26 schools. 

Women’s Action for Health and Dignity (WAHD) in Sierra Leone

During the early stages of the outbreak, Women’s Action for Health and Dignity (WAHD) noticed that women, particularly women survivors, were at a particular disadvantage when it came to accessing scarce resources and finding support. As such, WAHD has worked with experts, survivors, community members, and government officials to establish a network of support for women survivors and to dispel myths and stigma about survivors. The organization has also provided basic support to 50 women survivors, including food, clothing, and livelihoods, as well as trainings on health behavior and practices. The trainings offered by WAHD have allowed women to re-enter their communities as advocates for survivors and educators on appropriate prevention measures. To date, WAHD has reached nearly 500 people with educational outreach in person. 

Helping Our People Excel (HOPE) in Liberia

When the Ebola outbreak reached its community, HOPE worked with local religious leaders, teachers, coaches, and youth mentors to coordinate community efforts and to share critical information on how to prevent and identify Ebola and identify households with urgent needs. HOPE launched an intensive emergency supply kit delivery campaign to ensure that households had the food and sanitary materials they needed. HOPE also trained community health volunteers on how to educate people about Ebola, how to identify the needs of survivors, and how to respond to individuals showing symptoms. These teams are actively monitoring and responding to urgent needs of survivor households with technical and financial support from HOPE. For its post-Ebola work, HOPE has been focusing on providing trainings and livelihoods support to adoelscent girls and new mothers.

While Ebola may be on the decline, it will take months and years for affected communities to rebuild. We will continue to support these community-rooted organizations as they work on recovery. Thank you for your critical support. Until next time! 

With gratitude,

Team Africa Responds