Keeping the Faith is published one year since the Sierra Leone government declared a state of emergency, launching a series of measures as the spread of Ebola spiralled out of control. ![]() It also argues that the international community should involve faith leaders earlier during future health crises. With 26 new cases of Ebola reported across the region last week alone, the report stresses that governments and humanitarian organisations must continue to engage with faith leaders in the response and recovery. According to a senior member of the Ebola Task Force in Kenema District in Sierra Leone, the country “would have saved more lives and more money had religious leaders been engaged at an earlier stage of the disease outbreak.” They also played a crucial role in counselling survivors and challenging stigma.īut many of those interviewed believe that faith leaders should have been involved far sooner. ![]() As trusted sources of information, they quashed rumours about the disease - such as that the disease was man-made and being spread deliberately - and encouraged communities to accept life-saving advice from health workers. Keeping the Faith, a joint report by CAFOD, Christian Aid, Tearfund and Islamic Relief, shows that Christian and Muslim leaders were able to deliver health messages in parts of the two countries that governments and NGOs could not reach. Christian and Muslim leaders played “essential role” in tackling the Ebola virusįaith leaders in Sierra Leone and Liberia played an “essential role” in stemming the spread of the Ebola virus, according to a new report, but the delay in involving them in the response cost lives.
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