Aid Agencies Adapt West African Ebola Responses, As Officials In Those Countries Try To Coordinate Efforts

News outlets report on how humanitarian aid agencies are adapting to implement Ebola responses in West Africa, as well as the coordination among those groups with West African officials.

Devex: Ebola puts humanitarian supply chains to the test
“…The very nature of relief supply chains is to operate in dynamic and chaotic environments. But in the face of the largest Ebola outbreak ever recorded, achieving the well-established humanitarian goal of delivering the right supplies in the right quantities to the right locations at the right time has proven to be a massive — and mostly unique — challenge, even for the most seasoned emergency responders…” (De Vos, 11/17).

The Guardian: Ebola crisis forces aid agencies to rewrite the rules
“…[A]dapting has become second nature for those responding to a situation unprecedented in modern times. Amid a belated influx of international aid, operating manuals are being updated by organizations scrambling to stem an outbreak. With the death toll across Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone topping 5,000 this month, everything from equipment to medical trials to psychology handbooks is being tested, upgraded, and refashioned…” (Mark, 11/19).

Wall Street Journal: For West Africa’s Ebola Czars, Crisis Requires a Juggling Act
“…Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone face a collective health crisis that would tax the most-developed countries. But added to their burden is coordinating the many do-gooder agencies. How these [West African] officials carry out those duties will help determine how fast their countries can contain Ebola…” (Gauthier-Villars, 11/18).

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