SAP Helps Fight Against Ebola in West Africa

Newsbyte, December 2, 2014 /3BL Media/ - International software company SAP is donating € 150,000 to support immediate relief efforts in Sierra Leone, Guinea and Liberia in the fight against the most widespread epidemic of Ebola in history.

These three West African countries are currently most affected by the spread of the epidemic and are also among the poorest nations in the world. Very few people in these countries can read and write, there are few hospitals and doctors, infrastructure is weak, and governmental institutions function inadequately. Despite attempts to deploy more health workers and open new Ebola treatment centers in the worst-affected countries, the World Health Organization (WHO) said that there is a shortfall of more than 3,000 beds in Sierra Leone and Liberia.

As a result of the epidemic of Ebola, the WHO has already reported 5,420 deaths. They assume the true number is three times higher. Expectations are that there will be as many as 10,000 new Ebola cases per week by December 2014.

In September, the United Nations Security Council declared the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa “a threat to international peace and security” and unanimously adopted a resolution urging UN member states to provide more resources to fight the outbreak. The WHO stated that the cost for combating the epidemic will be a minimum of $1 billion.

Every year, SAP Corporate Social Responsibility sets aside a portion of its donation budget for disaster relief. It has decided to donate a total of €150,000 to support two of the leading charitable organizations working on the ground to contain the epidemic: Doctors without Borders and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Both organizations are struggling to meet immediate needs, particularly in terms of treatment. They have increased their efforts to hire health workers, secure funds to open new treatment centers, and manage the long-term operations needed to stop the spread of Ebola.

Media Contact: Nicola Leske, +49 (0) 6227 7-50852, nicola.leske@sap.com, CET