In midst of
the panic over the Ebola outbreak and the first US Ebola patient, it is
important to recognize that the effect of Ebola reaches beyond the terrifying
symptoms and speed with which it spreads.
Recently, the UN Food and Agriculture Organization conducted an
assessment in northern Liberia that concluded that the Ebola outbreak has had a
significant effect on food security in Africa as well.
Production
of food slowed 10-25% in certain areas as people became too afraid to work in
the fields. The majority of Ebola
victims are also of working age, which means that households affected by the
disease also lost people who could have worked in the fields. This also means that household income
decreased as well.
This
decrease of production and income coupled with panicked purchasing of food
resulted in food shortages and price fluctuations. Any food that was left became harder to trade
– in order to prevent the spread of Ebola, local authorities closed down
markets where people would normally buy and sell food. The effect of these high food prices percolated
throughout the economy as other commodities like fuel also became more
expensive. As a result, savings that
local residents had accrued were drained, and people were no longer able to
repay the loans they had taken out to start farming-related businesses.
In the
upcoming months, it is estimated that 1.3 million people in Guinea, Liberia, and
Sierra Leone will need help feeding themselves.
Furthermore, these countries had generally already imported more food
than they exported, and border closures and quarantines will prevent open trade of food.
I think
this case illustrates several things.
First, it shows how intimately food security is tied to so many
different facets of society due to its nature as one of the basic human
necessities. Second, it shows how
important building resilience is for food security in case of unpredictable
shocks such as the Ebola outbreak.
Third, it shows that preserving stability is necessary from the very
start of a crisis before other issues emerge as a result.
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