World Bank: Economic Impact Of Ebola Outbreak Could Be ‘Catastrophic’
Lauren F Friedman
BusinessInsider.com
Sept. 17, 2014
The World Bank released a statement Wednesday warning that the economic impact of the Ebola outbreak in West Africa was “already serious” and could be “catastrophic” if the international community does not take serious action soon.
This Ebola outbreak is unprecendented in scope, and worsening with alarming speed. There have been 2,453 deaths counted so far, and 4,963 confirmed, probable, and suspected cases — almost half of which have been diagnosed in the past 21 days.
“The primary cost of this tragic outbreak is in human lives and suffering,” said World Bank Group president Jim Yong Kim, but the economic repercussions cannot be ignored. “Today’s report underscores the huge potential costs of the epidemic if we don’t ramp up our efforts to stop it now.”
The World Bank analysis includes the following estimates of the economic impacts if the outbreak is quickly contained (“Low Ebola”) or if it continues to spin out of control (“High Ebola”):
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