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UN Official: Ebola Outbreak to Push 1 Million More People into Poverty in DRC
UN Development Programme's resident representative in the DRC, Damien Mama, said the Ebola outbreak will push approximately 1 million more people below the poverty line in the country, where 6 in 10 are already poor. The outbreak is expected to cost Africa $3.6 billion and threaten over 300,000 jobs.
Damien Mama, the United Nations Development Programme's (UNDP) resident representative in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), said the ongoing Ebola outbreak in the country could push an additional 1 million people into poverty in a country where 6 in 10 already live below the poverty line.
Mama, speaking at the weekly press briefing at the United Nations Office in Geneva, emphasized that the outbreak is not just a health crisis but will also have devastating economic consequences.
Mama stated that as of this week, more than 1,400 confirmed Ebola cases have been identified in the DRC and Uganda, with over 350 deaths, and said the outbreak will create a wave of poverty beyond its direct effects.
Noting that more than 90 percent of confirmed cases are concentrated in Ituri province, a major trading hub, Mama said, "Recent analyses show that in a country like the DRC, where six out of ten people live below the poverty line, the outbreak will push about 1 million more people into poverty."
Mama expressed that the outbreak could cost Africa up to $3.6 billion and threaten over 300,000 jobs. He said that even if the outbreak is contained, the DRC could lose more than $1 billion in revenue and 55,000 jobs, which could reduce the continent's gross domestic product by $2.37 billion.
Pointing out that people have lost their jobs due to the outbreak, markets have slowed, and families are on the brink, Mama assessed, "In desperate situations, families are forced to violate isolation measures. That's why medical intervention alone is not enough."
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