Ebola down, Hunger up!

Ebola is coming down in Liberia.

Though the fight is far from over, the Ebla crisis in Liberia is beginning to come under control. Thursday, President Ellen Johnson Sierleaf lifted the State of Emergency that was imposed in August. When the State of Emergency was declared, a 9 p.m. curfew was imposed, quarantines were enforced, authorities restricted the flow of people from one county to another, and all public meetings including schools and churches were ordered to be closed. In President Ellen's address, she changed the nightly curfew from 9 p.m. to 12 p.m. Preparations are also being made to re-open schools across the nation. The president told school authorities to clean up their school facilities in preparation. A decision to reopen schools is dependent upon continued progress in the fight against Ebola.  In the meantime, health authorities will continue to restrict the flow of people from one county to another hoping to maintain the gains that have been made against Ebola. President Ellen Johnson Sierleaf said the national goal is to have zero new cases of Ebola by Christmas.  

Hunger is going up.

While Ebola is reducing in Liberia, hunger is growing. One of the side effects of Ebola is farmers were not able to plant their fields this year. Two thirds of Liberians rely on their family farms for survival. 1.7 million people are currently experiencing food shortages in Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea. 90% of Liberian households have reduced the amount of food they eat each meal. 85% are eating fewer meals than before the Ebola crisis started. UN Human Rights Campaign released a statement warning that West Africa may be "on the brink of a major food crisis." Please pray for the growing food crisis in Liberia.

Sources: 

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-30044418

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/14/world/africa/president-ellen-johnson-sirleaf-ends-state-of-emergency.html?_r=0

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/11/13/liberia-s-ebola-famine.html