Socio-Economic Impacts of the Ebola on Africa

The overall objective is to assess the socio-economic impacts of EVD not only on the countries with widespread and intense transmission, but West Africa more widely and the continent as a whole—both the real costs as well as growth and development prospects.

The study looks at the outbreak’s impacts—qualitative and quantitative—endeavouring to grasp the interrelations among them by investigating mechanisms and channels of transmission, while trying to capture their size. Analysing these findings, the study offers recommendations to mitigate the disease’s impacts, including building more systematic coping and response mechanisms.

Despite uncertainty surrounding some of this study’s estimates and analysis, they are useful for policymakers (of affected and non-affected countries) to better understand the impacts of an EVD outbreak on socio-economic development and performance, allowing them to plan ahead and devise strategies for more resilience to EVD. The study’s findings and conclusions will be updated until the crisis is over, culminating in a fully fledged evaluation once the outbreak is contained.