The Economic Impacts of Ebola: The First 100 Firms

The Ebola outbreak in West Africa generated much speculation about the likely impact of the outbreak and accompanying containment measures on growth, and on what constitutes the appropriate policy response. Much of this speculation, however, has been based on little quantitative data. Our research objective is thus to quantify the cost of the outbreak on firms, and unpack the channels of the effect – for example untangling the effects of depressed consumer demand, trade restrictions, and capital and labor market disruptions. The SEED-sponsored 1st 100 Firms enabled us to launch this project as the outbreak was unfolding, surveying firms as they coped with the rapidly changing economic environment. The pilot contributes to a larger research agenda exploring the private sector in Sierra Leone and evaluating what kinds of interventions might effectively contribute to economic reconstruction after the disease is contained.