Organizations involved in helping victims of Aids and Ebola - Research Paper Example

Organizations Involved In Helping Victims of AIDS and Ebola Nigeria continues to garner national, regional, and international support from different organizations that are focused on eliminating Ebola and reducing the impacts of AIDS in the country. The most appreciable efforts currently come from the World Health Organization (WHO). The WHO has been actively involved in playing multiple roles, with the most important at this moment being the establishment of the extent to which Ebola has spread in the country.

As at July 2014, the organization was the first to send personnel in an effort to establish the possibility of the presence of Ebola in the country, when it was established that the virus had spread from Liberia and Guinea to Nigeria. This when an American doctor, Kent Brantly, was infected, just days after the first doctor to die of Ebola, Samuel Brisbane from Liberia, was announced to be dead (Locke, 2014). The World Health Organization has also made efforts in making a comparison between Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Guinea, noting that the situation in Nigeria is easier to control as there are only 20 infections and 8 deaths as compared to other countries.

However, critics have continued to blame the UN agency for allegedly magnifying a mild Ebola story in Nigeria (The Economist, 2015). Of equally great importance to note is the need to recognize the efforts driven by smaller organizations, many of which do not have as much access to funding as the WHO. One of such organizations is known as Doctors Without Borders (MSF) (MSF, 2015). This organization has made great contributions in Nigeria as well as the other countries mentioned above in not only fighting Ebola but also in the fight against AIDS.

Another organization that has accomplished increasing relevance in the region is Catholic Relief Services (CRS), which continues to provide support for the three most affected countries. It is also extending its services into Nigeria, which is an effort worth appreciating by giving donations. Another organization has become increasingly prevalent in Liberia, which is one of the worst hit by the Ebola pandemic, is Africare (Gharib, 2014). It partners with local organizations, such Ellen Johnson in Liberia, among others within the region.

The organization has trained hundreds of local volunteers and facilitated a campaign to reach out to thousands of people. Also in Liberia is an organizations referred to as Samaritan’s Purse, which also operates in Liberia and seeks donations to support its mission to eliminate AIDS and Ebola. The alarming rate with which Ebola was spreading in west Africa in 2014 also invoked elevated concerns by the United Nations. The UN, as a result, termed the Ebola threat as major “threat to international peace and security” (UN, 2014).

Consequently, the UN, through the Security Council, adopted Resolution 2177 (2014), which was aimed at driving all UN agencies to act in collaboration with other national and international organizations in dealing with the issue. Of course, no one would ever forget the tremendous efforts that are extended by the Red Cross in Africa as the organization seeks to fight AIDS and Ebola among other big catastrophes. West Africa has remained a major target of the Red Cross, especially with the worrying threat of Ebola (RedCross, 2014).

The last organization that this analysis will look at is Glob Health Action, which has also made great contributions in providing health-based as well as educational help to the victims and citizens of nations affected by Ebola, especially Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone (Davtyan, 2014).