Lessons for the Future What East African experts learned from fighting the Ebola epidemic in West Africa A regional conference with international participation held in Nairobi, Kenya from 6th to 8th November 2017 Lessons for the Future What East African experts learned from fighting the Ebola epidemic in West Africa A regional conference with international participation held in Nairobi, Kenya from 6th to 8th November 2017 Conference Report Implemented by: Contents List of Abbreviations . 5 Foreword . 7 Summary . 8 Introduction . 9 East joins West in the fight against Ebola . 10 A wealth of experience . 11 Objectives of the conference . 11 Conference methodology and brief programme overview . 12 Voices from the Ebola frontline: Documenting a treasure trove of experience . 12 Day one: Welcoming delegates to Kenya . 16 Opening speech by Dr Monica Musenero . 17 Germany’s experiences of establishing a database of rapidly deployable experts . 19 First sharing of experiences . 20 Exploring eight themes . 20 The first four pre-set themes . 21 The four themes subsequently chosen by the participants . 21 Theme 1: Being ready at short notice – establishing a pool of deployable experts . 22 What worked well? . 22 What did not work well? . 22 Lessons learned . 24 Recommendations . .. 24 Theme 2: Taking informed decisions – effective communication to mitigate risks and crises . 25 What worked well? . 25 What did not work well? . 25 Lessons learned . 27 Recommendations . .. 28 Theme 3: Working together - One Health . .28 What worked well? . 28 What did not work well? . 29 Lessons learned . 29 Recommendations . .. 30 Theme 4: Effective logistics – what, where, when and how? . 31 What worked well? . 31 What did not work well? . 31 Lessons learned . 33 Recommendations . .. 33 Theme 5: Taking care of the responders and affected populations . 34 What worked well? . 34 What did not work well? . 34 Lessons learned . 36 Recommendations . .. 36 Theme 6: Education and research . 38 What worked well? . 38 What did not work well? . 38 Lessons learned . 39 Recommendations . .. 39 Theme 7: Strengthening health systems and building resilient communities . 40 What worked well? . 40 What did not work well? . 40 Lessons learned . 41 Recommendations . .. 41 Theme 8: Coordination and leadership during an epidemic response . 42 What worked well? . 42 What did not work well? . 42 Lessons learned . 43 Recommendations . .. 43 Presentation of recommendations to the plenary session . 45 Recommendations at a glance . 47 Recommendations for the future . .. 47 On risk and crisis communication . 47 On logistics . 47 On human resources . 47 On learning from others . 47 Recommendations for the future for the regional level . .. 47 On political engagement . 47 On preparedness and response contingency plans . 48 On regional coordination . ..