Ivory Coast re-opens borders closed during Ebola epidemic
ABIDJAN - Ivory Coast has re-opened its western borders with Liberia and Guinea two years after they were closed to prevent the spread of an Ebola epidemic that killed thousands across West Africa, an Ivorian government spokesman said on Friday.
Around 29,000 people contracted the haemorrhagic fever during the more than two-year long outbreak, the worst on record. Over 11,000 died before it finally ended in June, nearly all of them in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone.
"We had to take these measures to protect our country. And the fact we didn't have a single case must be considered a real success," Bruno Kone said, referring to the border closure measure.
