UNICEF Liberia Ebola Outbreak Weekly Situation Report #82, 22 April 2015

HIGHLIGHTS

• No new confirmed cases of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) reported since 20 March 2015.

• The Government of Liberia has identified 4,436 (2,309 girls and 2,127 boys) as affected by EVD. The Government has defined the number of children ‘affected’ as quarantined, orphaned, unaccompanied and separated children (UASC), in treatment and discharged. Orphans are children who have lost one or both parents/primary caregivers due to EVD. More specifically, to-date a total number of children registered by the Ministry social workers as having lost one or both parents/primary caregivers due to EVD is 3,187 (851 having lost both parents and 2,336 having lost one parent).

• Last week, UNICEF’s local implementing partners Helping Hand and SEARCH identified and hired additional 200 EVD survivors, bringing the total to 295 out of the targeted 900 survivors in six counties. The survivors will provide psychosocial support to families affected by EVD and link them to relevant services as needed.

• At least 3,460 schools have had three representatives trained on implementing the infection prevention and control (IPC) measures mandated by the protocols (~10,380 stakeholders).

• The Education Cluster developed a comprehensive 3W Mapping tool to promote complementary programming and avoid duplication in education service delivery during the recovery process.

• The Education and WASH clusters are harmonizing each sector’s mapping of school-based WASH interventions by government and NGO partners to improve inter-sector coordination and synergy for all current and future WASH-in-Schools (WinS) infrastructure and campus hygiene promotion activities.

• UNICEF continues to support the preparation of the upcoming measles campaign that is scheduled to take place from 8 to 14 May 2015. Field monitoring plans have been finalized to deploy about 40 UNICEF staff to support the counties through preparedness and intra-campaign activities.

• As part of the decommissioning of the Ebola Treatment Units (ETU) and Community Care Centers (CCC), UNICEF continues to work with partners on EVD liquid waste management. All priority ETUs have been de-sludged. Installation of the suction devices on the non-priority ETUs has begun.

• Through community engagement and radio messages, UNICEF continues to dispel reported rumors and misconceptions. School children’s fear of the thermoflash, vaccine-related rumors and laxity in EVD preventive hygienic practices are some of the issues that were dealt with in the week.