Swedish Ambassador to Liberia Sofia Strand has praised the people of Lofa County for their resilience in the fight against the deadly Ebola virus in the county.
Ambassador Strand said the people of Lofa led the way in stopping the spread of the virus, noting that the resolve and resilience of the people, working at the community level in contact tracing, hygiene, and sanitation promotion and difficult changes in burial practices, contributed to the success that is now visible in the fight against the disease.
The Swedish Ambassador made the commendation Thursday at the ongoing Bar Annual Retreat and Refresher Training for Catholic Justice Advisors (CJA) and staff of Carter Center from across Liberia held at the Village Development Fund compound on the outskirts of Voinjama City in Lofa County.
The Swedish envoy noted that it is important that communities remain engaged and involved until Liberia is declared Ebola free.
Ambassador Strand said the positive role of the communities in combating the Ebola virus has brought renewed recognition of the importance of community participation and involvement, a lesson that she urged all development actors, both national and international, to take into account when doing projects.
The Swedish diplomat also pointed out that lessons learnt from the community involvement in the Ebola response is a clear manifestation that the communities can play an important role in the access to justice interventions in Liberia.
Ambassador Strand conveyed a message of solidarity and condolences on behalf of the government and people of Sweden to the people of Lofa as they battle the Ebola virus disease that has brought great human suffering and hardship to the people.
During the initial stage of the Ebola outbreak in Liberia in March 2014, Lofa County was considered the epicenter of the disease in the country.
The county has, however, now gone more than 100 days without recording a single case of the Ebola disease, which has claimed more than 3,600 lives in Liberia and over 10,000 lives in the three hardest hit West African countries of Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone.
LINA