Leading the News:

West Africa Ebola Outbreak -

On November 12th, Dalberg Global Development Advisors provided new insights into the types of organizations that have contributed most to international response efforts to address the Ebola epidemic in West Africa. The research finds that only two percent of the $1.2 billion committed to the Ebola response thus far has come for individuals and corporations, while private giving as a whole, including from foundations and NGOs, accounts for only seven percent of total funding. This is significantly less than private contributions made in response to other crises, including the 2010 Haiti earthquake, and the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.

On November 13th, Anthony Banbury, head of the United Nations (U.N.) emergency health mission coordinating the Ebola response effort (UNMEER), called for the global community to scale up its response to the Ebola outbreak. Special Representative Banbury referenced the more than 5,000 confirmed deaths from Ebola, as well as the disease’s devastating impact across the development and economic sectors of the hardest-hit African countries, before calling for increases in staff on the ground, Ebola treatment facilities, and community care centers.