(ANS - Madrid) - "In 10 months 4,000 people have died due to Ebola, but in three months, some three million people have died due to lack of resources and food, and yet no one talks about the epidemic of hunger and poverty ". So it says in a statement from the Salesian Mission Office in Madrid, reminding the world how important the fight against poverty is, while at the same time seeking to prevent the recurrence of epidemics such as the present outbreak of Ebola.

More than 4,000 people have died in West Africa since the beginning of the worst outbreak of Ebola in history. "This is a health crisis which has become a humanitarian emergency.” says Fr Jorge Crisafulli, Provincial of the Salesians in English-speaking West Africa.  The closed borders mean that there is no trade, thousands of people have lost their jobs, food prices are getting higher and higher, schools are closed, there is a shortage of doctors and nurses ... this is the situation we live in every day. The situation has got out of hand. The authorities and healthcare systems are unable to cope.

The Salesians continue to face Ebola in Guinea Conakry, Sierra Leone and Liberia.  Educating people to the dangers, caring for orphans, distributing food and disinfectants – these are just some of the things we are doing at the present time. "But above all, we continue to stay with the people. We remain at their side and they feel that we are close to them." say the Salesians on the ground.

Apart from the severity of the epidemic, the Mission Office in Madrid reminds the international community that about 10,000 people die every day from malnutrition in the world. The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty was last Friday 17 October. To mark the occasion the Mission Office in Madrid asked the international community for a greater commitment to the fight against poverty and inequality.

Over 800 million people live in conditions of poverty. The world must do all it can to reverse the economic crisis and eliminate epidemics such as Ebola. "Poverty is at the root of this epidemic, so it is important to raise awareness of the fact that the fight against poverty is a fight for global development," says Ana Munoz, spokesperson for the Salesian Mission Office in Madrid.

Published 22/10/2014