West knows best

摘要

In 1995 and 1996, Gabon in central west Africa experienced two outbreaks of Ebola haemorrhagic fever, one of the world's deadliest diseases. A total of 91 people were infected, of whom 66 died. The numbers were small compared with previous outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudan, but what happened in Gabon marked a turning point in the way diseases are handled in poorer countries.