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【見聞獨家】來自塞拉利昂的真實聲音:埃博拉肆虐 物價飛漲 經濟重創

來源: http://wallstreetcn.com/node/210371

如果你生活在埃博拉肆虐的塞拉利昂,每天看到的將是怎樣的殘酷現實?

每天生活在恐懼之中,生活設施全面受到限制,道路封鎖措施限制了農民活動,推高了商品價格,城市里的進口商品價格也水漲船高,各行業都遭受重創……對人們來說,埃博拉不僅導致人們瘋狂逃離受災區,也讓鄰里回避那些感染者的家人以及在一線抗擊埃博拉的工作人員。

對生活在塞拉利昂以及幾內亞、利比里亞的人們來說,這已經早已超越了一場公共衛生危機,而是一場經濟、社會、人文的災難。

塞拉利昂人力資源管理辦公室科技官Matthew Marke為華爾街見聞獨家撰稿,講述了埃博拉對他的國家帶來的巨大影響。

 

Matthew Marke

(圖為本文作者,塞拉利昂人力資源管理辦公室科技官Matthew Marke,為華爾街見聞獨家撰稿。)

走出2002年內戰衰敗中的塞拉利昂再一次陷入危機,這一次是因為埃博拉(EVD)疫情的爆發。塞拉利昂與幾內亞和利比里亞交界,這兩個國家同塞拉利昂一樣,在過去幾年遭遇了政治上的動蕩。

正肆虐塞拉利昂的埃博拉病毒,首先在幾內亞被發現。2013年12月旱季開始時,病毒開始在幾內亞傳播,到2014年5月,病毒已經從凱拉洪(Kailahun)邊境地區傳播到塞拉利昂。包括世衛組織在內的衛生工作者,都認為疫病是致命的,並且在根據環境不斷發生基因變異,尚無法治愈。

自埃博拉爆發起,人們便開始對此次疫情感到不安和懷疑,再加上政府沒有及時對疾病的爆發采取行動,人們開始懷疑EVD疫情的真實情況,很多在爆發區的人們將疫情歸因於政府的政治陰謀。由於病毒持續快速的傳播,整個塞拉利昂地區現在都被埃博拉病毒影響,其西部地區(Freetown)首當其沖。

隨著疾病蔓延,塞拉利昂的公共衛生設施現已嚴重緊缺。在國際組織的幹預下,傳染病研究中心和收留中心正在加緊建設以便滿足政府應對埃博拉的需要。但這些仍然不夠。根據世界衛生組織的最新的數字,塞拉利昂近期已被確診的病人和疑似病例共有5338例,其中死亡1510例。

過去幾個月,政府為了控制疫情已經制定了一系列的限制政策,並將省內的高風險區域隔離開。疫情嚴重的遠東地區Kailahun已經開始實行傍晚7點後宵禁,來往國內的摩托車和出租車也只允許在白天的一定時間內運行。除教堂和清真寺以外,人群聚集的場所,如酒吧、電影院和學校,以及高風險地區的市場都已被關閉。

隔離區的出入受到了嚴格限制,但仍然有人設法逃避警察和軍官設置的路障來設法做生意。這一系列行動已經導致商品和服務的市場價格翻倍。

在農村地區,道路封鎖措施限制了農民和勞動者的活動,同時也限制了商品的供應。一方面,人們逃往沒有疾病的安全地區,災區的有些農場已經被拋棄。另一方面,留在災區的農場主或重病,或已經死去或被強制檢疫,災區的農作物還沒有收獲。

在城市,由於埃博拉疫情日益嚴重,進口商品的批發商和零售商擡高了他們的價格。各個行業稅收遭受重創,采礦業、建築業、旅遊業和運輸業等行業已經減少了運營。經濟受到的打擊不可避免地嚴重影響著人們的生活,造成某些商品滯銷、失業以及收入下降。

現在只有兩家航空公司(SM Brussels以及Air Morro)還在飛塞拉利昂,每周兩個航班。其他主要的航空公司如British Airways, Emirates, Kenya Airways ASKY等已經取消了它們的航班。受此影響,旅館和其他娛樂中心只能維持最低運營狀態而不得不裁員。

從人們的行為來看,埃博拉不僅導致人們逃離受災區,也讓鄰里回避那些感染者的家人以及在一線抗擊埃博拉的工作人員。

如果埃博拉疫情繼續惡化,那麽已經遭到嚴重毀壞、經濟岌岌可危、失業率逾80%的塞拉利昂經濟還將進一步惡化。

(實習編輯 戴博 翻譯)

SIERRA_LEONE_EBOLA_5_39850339

英語原文如下:

Ebola's Economic Impacts on Sierra Leone

(Contributed by Matthew Marke, Technical Coordinator of Human Resource Management Office, Sierra Leone, for Wallstreetcn.com use only)

Sierra Leone emerging from the decay civil war since 2002 has again plunged into a severe outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). The country which shares it borders with Guinea and Liberia have similarly suffered political instability in the past years.

The current Ebola virus outbreak in Sierra Leone started from Guinea in December 2013 at the beginning of the dry season (winter) and by May 2014 it has been ongoing in Sierra Leone from the border district in Kailahun.  The disease is regarded as deadly and up to date according to health practitioners including WHO is without cure.    

Since the early emergency of Ebola, some people were less sure and skeptical about it especially when the government failed to act quickly on the outbreak. Thus, the reality of the EVD was questioned and many people mainly in the outbreak areas attributed it to political conspiracy by the government.  As the virus continues to spread faster the entire districts in Sierra Leone are now affected by Ebola with Western Area (Freetown) in the lead. 

The public health infrastructure in Sierra Leone is being severely strained as the outbreak grows. With the intervention of the international community, Epicentres and holding centres are being constructed to complement government effort in the fight against Ebola even though they are not enough. According to WHO recent figures a total of 5,338 confirmed, probable and suspected cases of Ebola disease with 1,510 number of deaths.

The government in the past months has issued numerous restrictions and also isolated high risk areas in the provinces to try to tackle the country’s outbreak. District like Kailahun where the outbreak started in the far east of the country have curfew at 7pm, and across the nation motorbikes and taxis are allowed to run on a limited basis during daylight hours. Places of assembly, such as bars, cinemas and schools including markets for highly risk areas, are closed around the country with the exception of churches and mosques.

Also traveling in and out of the isolated communities in the country is severely restricted though some people meandered their routes to run businesses escaping the road blocks manned by police and military officers. This has resulted to market price of goods and services doubling up.

In rural areas, road blocks manned by police and military officers prevent the movement of farmers and labourers as well as the supply of goods. Besides some farms are being abandoned by people running away from the epicentres and going to areas that do not have the disease while crops in others remain unharvest due to the farm owners either being severely sick, dead or in enforced quarantine.  

In the city, importers including wholesalers and retailers have increased their prices as Ebola intensifies. Revenue collection is slow in all the sectors and industries such as mining, construction, tourism and transport sectors have slow down operations and the effects on economic activities is adversely affecting people leading to the decline in sales of certain good, loss of jobs and personal income.  

Currently, there are only two airlines (SM Brussels and Air Morroc) flying twice a week to Sierra Leone. Other major ones such as British Airways, Emirates, Kenya Airways ASKY etc) have cancelled their flights and this have resulted to hotels and other entertainment centres laying off workers due to the fact that the run minimal services. 

On the behavioral aspect, it has not only included people emigrating from infected communities but also neighbours are shunning the family of victims and those involved in the Ebola fight due to the fear of contagion. 

Should the Ebola outbreak continues on the already devastated and weak economy and where unemployment rates are looming over 80%, Sierra Leone economy will worsen further. 
 

 

 

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