Myth About Africa #3: Ebola was a threat everywhere.

My earliest memories of the word “Africa” were dominated by images of famine-stricken Ethiopian orphans and AIDS patients withering on hospital cots. While these images might have been accurate in some places a couple decades ago, they are not now. Now when most Americans hear “Africa”, their first thought is Ebola.

If you arrived at this blog post intrigued by my Facebook claim of “experience with Ebola,” I have a confession: despite living in Africa for two years, I have zero experience with Ebola. That’s the point. Namibia has never had a case of Ebola. The closest ever case was in South Africa in 1996. Although I am far removed from the most recent Ebola epidemic, I’ve received some concerned queries from my friends and family in the States. Truly, I am grateful for their concern.

But Namibia has never been in much danger of a major Ebola outbreak. The main reason is simple: Namibia has been one of the countries most affected by HIV/AIDS. This claim may seem counterintuitive. Let me explain. West Africa (the locus of the most recent Ebola epidemic) escaped the full brunt of the HIV/AIDS pandemic in the 1990s. The HIV prevalence rate in Liberia is 1.1 percent. Most international funds for fighting HIV/AIDS were spent in Southern Africa. Namibia, for example, has a prevalence rate of 14.3 percent. Because of this influx in spending, Namibia has a solid medical infrastructure.  Each large town has a state hospital and many smaller communities have clinics staffed by trained nurses.

In West Africa, where many countries have been so riddled with war and corruption, citizens have little trust in any governmental institution--beleaguered hospitals included. That is not the case in Namibia. Here the government provides free HIV testing and counseling, as well as free antiretroviral therapy (the drugs that keep HIV at bay). As the prevalence rate is so high, many Namibians take advantage of these services, which has led to a comfort with clinics in general. Namibians don’t go to the doctor just for HIV-related matters; they go for minor illnesses too. Whenever I get the smallest head cold, my coworkers insist that I go to the hospital immediately. If Ebola were to strike Namibia, the people would be more likely to seek early medical attention than many people in West Africa.

Another reason Ebola spread so quickly in West Africa is that during burial rituals, the living relatives frequently touch the deceased and contact the victim’s bodily fluids. In Namibia this would be less likely to happen. Once again, the reason is HIV. The Namibian government has sponsored many HIV/AIDS prevention education programs. They have been effective.  Prevalence rates for young women have dropped by 50 percent in the past 10 years. I can ask any of my students how HIV is transmitted, and they will robotically recite “blood, breast milk, sexual fluids”—all bodily fluids. Health workers routinely visit remote areas to perform HIV/AIDS outreach and deliver routine vaccinations. The state-run radio regularly broadcasts reminders to wear a condom.  In the event of an Ebola outbreak, these programs could easily expand for Ebola prevention.

I can’t pretend I am smart enough to think of all these ideas myself. I found this article “Why Ebola Hit West Africa Hard” immensely informative.

While the HIV/AIDS pandemic has expedited the development of Namibia’s health systems, obviously HIV/AIDS itself is a very bad thing. The disease killed about 6,600 Namibians last year. However, through improved health care and education, Namibia’s national health is improving. Most people I meet look remarkably healthy.  And they should be.

My host family’s diet is as follows: a small amount of meat, a lot of field spinach, and even more millet porridge. Millet is loaded with B vitamins, protein, fiber, and iron. It’s so healthy, I am surprised American housewives haven’t turned it into a fad diet. My host family also tills the fields, pounds the millet into flour, herds cattle, plays soccer, and dances. They dance really well, which leads me to my next true myth about Africa.

True myth #3: All Africans can dance.

Some of my learners performing in traditional garb.

As soon as the school bell rings at the end of the day, I hear the girls beating on the school’s leather drum. The older girls teach the younger to flamboyantly stomp in time to their singing. They have no self-consciousness. (I squarely blame music videos for Americans’ self-consciousness in dancing. We compare our dancing to professionals on TV, so naturally we doubt our own abilities.) Tangent aside, the girls here—and frequently the boys—know that dancing is just fun and don’t worry if their hips pop as seductively as J.Lo’s… Is she still famous? I haven’t been in the US for a long time. I guess I’ll find out in 3 months when I return. Don’t worry; I promise not to bring Ebola with me.