An Uxbridge woman is helping communities in Sierra Leone recover from the devastating Ebola outbreak which was declared almost three years ago on March 23 2014.

Mansi Sidana, 19, is working alongside young British and Sierra Leonean volunteers in the region that was badly affected by Ebola, helping young locals find work and rebuild their communities.

Mansi travelled to Sierra Leone in January with international development organisation Y-Care International, as part of the UK aid funded International Citizen Service volunteering programme.

Mansi said: “When I first arrived, the first thing I noticed was children as young as four years old were out working, doing things such as selling water and street food.

“My initial thoughts were that these children have been robbed of their childhood, but later came to realise that schools begins at the age of seven and that children are expected to contribute to the household – financially and through domestic tasks.

“This taught me not to judge straight away, and that Sierra Leone raises more resilient individuals.”

Ebola claimed the lives of almost 4,000 people in Sierra Leone, badly damaging the economy and increasing poverty levels.

Aid from the UK, delivered to Sierra Leone by the British armed forces, NHS volunteers and international development organisations, helped stop Ebola, saving thousands of lives and preventing the disease from spreading.

Although the Ebola outbreak was declared over by the World Health Organisation over six months ago, youth unemployment remains particularly high in Sierra Leone – which means communities lack the income they need to rebuild and recover.

Community tension has also increased, with children of victims and survivors experiencing physical and verbal abuse.

Mansi and her team mates are helping young people overcome these challenges by providing one-on-one training and mentoring, helping them develop their employability skills and find work.

In addition to their work with young people, the volunteers are running health and hygiene sessions to raise awareness of how to prevent the spread of disease.

UK aid continues to support Sierra Leone in its recovery, including research into an Ebola vaccine, helping hospitals and clinics back on track, providing support for survivors to help them cope with lasting health problems, and helping schools reopen so that children can stay on track with their education.

Mansi continued: “Witnessing the challenges people face here, I think it’s important that we stick together and tackle crises like Ebola.

I think support for UK aid is essential, because the fact I was born in the UK doesn’t make me more entitled to or deserving of luxuries than the orphans living on the street here.

ICS allows young people aged 18-25 from all over the UK to work on projects to improve health, education and livelihoods in Africa, Asia and Latin America. When Mansi gets back to the UK on 12th April, she will take on an ‘Action at Home’ project, to make sure that her new skills also benefit people in the UK.

Felicity Morgan, Director of ICS at VSO, said: “Our volunteers are doing really important work in Sierra Leone. Though Ebola is gone, its impact is still being felt and it’s essential we continue to support young Sierra Leoneans as they rebuild their country and their lives.

To find out more about ICS or to apply, visit www.volunteerics.org.