of this, there has also been a huge spoilage of the limited catch due to low demand as people’s movement has been restricted and market centres are not fully operational in the country.
Since the outbreak of the epidemic in Sierra Leone, the mostly affected sector in terms of exposure, deaths, displacement, and stigmatization by communities is the health sector. According to statistics so far, a total number of 48 health workers (nurses, Laboratory technicians, porters, burial teams and including three Doctors) have died. The health sector has been colossally devastated with low morale among health workers.
There are reported cases of harassment and forceful eviction of health workers from homes by landlord for being considered as Ebola virus carriers.
In carrying out their work in combating the Ebola virus and care giving to infected persons, health workers are constrained by inadequate supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Where they are being supplied, cases of substandard PPE have been reported and this has accounted for health personnel contracting the virus in the course of their duty. As the Ebola disease is a new phenomenon in the country, it required training for health personnel in handling affected persons. Hence, the high toll of death on health personnel of recent times.
The Municipal Workers Union has also recorded 25 deaths of members in two districts.
Memberships of unions operating in the manufacturing, tourism, agriculture, fisheries and mines have suffered either redundancy or pay cuts. The outbreak of the epidemic has accounted for the partial or complete closure of some business institutions that normally provide employment for their members. According to the General Secretary of the Security Union, KBJ Conteh, the redundancy rate of their members has reached about 45% since March, 2014.
The outbreak of the Ebola epidemic in Sierra Leone since May 2014 has also hard hit the tourism industry adversely. This epidemic has accounted for about 98% of checkouts in all hotels nationwide due to the cancellation of flights from and to Sierra Leone. The obvious effect of this in the tourism industry is “bad business,’ to be simply put. It has increased the cost of running a hotel per day, yet the income is nothing to write home about.
The above notwithstanding, the Sierra Leone traders Union is seeking support in the following areas:
- Sensitization and training of general membership on Ebola preventive measures nationwide and contact tracing.
- The provision of special assistance to health workers in the form of Personal Protective Equipment.
- Assistance to member homes that has been quarantined due to the Ebola
- Financial assistance to the Sierra Leone Traders Union solidarity fund to cater for both affected workers and family members of Ebola deceased workers.
In the present precarious and life threatening circumstance we are faced with in Sierra Leone, we are requesting StreetNet International to assist the union in mobilizing financial resources to help the union carry out more education on preventive measures, and also to enable it render more humanitarian assistance to its members and families that have already been quarantined.
As partners in development, we are looking forward to StreetNet and its international funding partners to extend assistance to the Sierra Leone Traders Union during these most challenging moments as a collective effort to eradicate this deadly disease that has and continues to ravage the West African sub-region.
Thank you so immensely as we anticipate your generous assistance.
Aaron A. Boima
National Secretary General – Sierra Leone Traders Union
National Coordinator: Informal Sector Coordinating Secretariat – Sierra Leone Labour Congress.