FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Rotterdam, The Netherlands (November 22, 2014) - Africa Press International (API) has launched a Fund Raising Campaign to Save African Journalists from Ebola. The campaigns goal is to provide protective equipments to local Journalist in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea directly exposed to the Ebola Epidemic. The virus is rapidly spreading within the three most affected countries mentioned above. Ebola carries a high risk of death and an average of 50% nearly succumbs to this disease. African Journalists who are reporting from the worst affected countries in Africa are at high risk of contamination, as they do not have proper protective equipments to save themselves from this dreaded virus. Even international journalists are very afraid to venture into these infected countries with the fear of infection.

So far, eight (8) African Journalists have died from Ebola related incidences, and the numbers may rise. This has highlighted the serious risk the press is facing without protective tools and safety gadgets.. As a result the Ebola crisis is being massively under reported. The World Health Organization (WHO), assistant director-general Dr. Bruce Aylward says; the reported caseloads in the three most-affected countries: Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone, inevitably under represent the actual number of infections.

In order to provide safety to these journalists, Africa Press International (API) has launched a campaign with a hope to raise $185,000. This fund will go into:

1) Buying and supplying protective Equipments e.g Face masks, disinfectant sprays, bio-hazard kits: plastic overalls, sterilized gloves, boots, chlorine, Eye protection gadgets etc.
2) Providing communication gadgets and training & security manuals in printed booklet format.
3) Providing small temporary scholarships (to include school fees and books) to the children of the fallen Journalists.

Local African journalists in the Ebola affected countries know the region better than outsiders and they are in far better position to report and record all that is happening. But many of them are poorly paid and barely have necessary working journalism tools? Because of this, the understanding of what is actually happening on the ground is limited, there is less sensitization of the masses in relation to proper safety procedures etc. This is actually affecting the process of seeking solutions.

Journalists are humans too and their lives are at great at risk. Speaking to The World Post Newspaper, Sierra Leonean Journalist Lewis, declared that: “We don’t have any of those protective measures like the foreign media. We are just making sure that we follow the rules--no touching, wash your hands with chlorine, don’t get too close to people”

Female Liberian Journalist Azango asks: “Where will journalists get hazard kits when even health workers don’t have enough and the government doesn’t want us to report?” She adds: “We are on our own. I wear a long-sleeve coat, put on rain boots, and have a hand sanitizer in my bag when I go reporting. That’s all.”

It is based on such testimonies that Africa Press International (API) has launched a worldwide donation drive on crowd funding website GoFundMe.com to urgently raise €148,000 ($185,000) to help save their lives. According to API’s Founder and Executive Director Larry Bate Takang, 120 Journalists died worldwide in 2013, and 76 have so far died in 2014 (counting) just to guarantee our rights to freedom of information. It is high time, he added “the world stood up to help those who constantly sacrifice their lives for our freedoms”.

You can take part in this Fund Raising campaign and do your part to Save Lives and minimize the risk of Death among the local Journalists. Donors will also be acknowledged on the official websites of Africa Press International (API), as well as African Celebrities Magazine (ACM). You are invited to contribute according to your capacity to help API raise $185,000 as soon as possible. More detailed information on this Fund Raising campaign can be found on this website - http://gofundme.com/h85i3k/ visit this website to know more about what is happening in these Ebola affected countries and to contribute your part.

Contact:
Africa Press International (API)
Klaverstraat 111C
3083 VG Rotterdam
The Netherlands
Website: http://www.africa-press.org/
Email: [email protected]/[email protected]
Tel: +31107862221

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