A UK charity is training local counsellors in safe burial rituals for Ebola victims, sources confirm. The program, run by the London-based NGO Safe Ground, aims to reduce transmission during funerals. Documents obtained by this reporter show the charity has trained 200 counsellors in Sierra Leone since March.
These counsellors teach families how to handle bodies without direct contact, using protective gear and disinfectant. The move comes as health officials warn that traditional burial practices, which involve close contact with the deceased, have fuelled outbreaks. A source within the charity told me: "
We are not here to change culture. We are here to save lives." But critics question the effectiveness of short-term training.
Dr. Amina Kargbo, a Sierra Leonean public health expert, said: "Counsellors need months of practice.
A few days is not enough." The charity declined to comment on funding, but accounts show a £500,000 grant from the UK government. The money trail leads to more questions.
Why is public money being spent on grief counselling when basic supplies are scarce? One nurse on the ground whispered: "We have no gloves.
We have no masks. But we have therapists." The charity insists the program is part of a long-term strategy to rebuild trust after the epidemic.
But in a region where 70 per cent of the population lives on less than $2 a day, the optics are troubling. Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation reports 22 new Ebola cases this week. The charity is now expanding to Guinea.
Cynics say it is a publicity stunt. I say follow the bodies and the balance sheets. The truth is buried somewhere in between.
