The Ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in West Africa in 2014 became the region's most dangerous pandemic in history. Initially misdiagnosed by health authorities in Liberia, Guinea, and Sierra Leone, the epicenters of the crises, the wider health infrastructure of the international community similarly failed to grasp the enormity of the challenge posed by this pandemic to West Africa and its potential global ramifications. By the time recognition dawned about the immensity of the challenges that were posed by this pandemic, it took the introduction of extraordinary measures through the characterization of the disease as a threat to international peace and security pursuant to Chapter VII of the UN Charter to get the necessary institutional and bureaucratic machineries to intervene. This article argues that EVD, disastrous in its outcome, exposed the weaknesses and failures of existing institutional frameworks at national, regional, and continental to global levels. Focusing primarily on multilateral responses (the UN, the African Union [AU], and the Economic Community of West African States [ECOWAS]) to the epidemic, this article argues for enhanced global-regional collaboration in the context of the UN Charter's Chapter VIII for more effective future responses to health crises in West Africa. This article contributes to the ongoing debate on the reform of global health governance by analyzing the existing health governance strategies established by ECOWAS and implemented through the West African Health Organization.

中文翻译：

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西非的埃博拉大流行：对卫生危机采取有效的多边应对措施

2014 年在西非爆发的埃博拉病毒病 (EVD) 成为该地区历史上最危险的大流行病。最初被危机中心利比里亚、几内亚和塞拉利昂的卫生当局误诊，国际社会更广泛的卫生基础设施同样未能掌握这一流行病对西非构成的巨大挑战及其潜在的全球影响。当人们开始认识到这一流行病带来的巨大挑战时，它采取了非常措施，根据《联合国宪章》第七章将这种疾病定性为对国际和平与安全的威胁，以获得必要的机构和官僚机构进行干预。这篇文章认为，EVD 的后果是灾难性的，将国家、区域和大陆现有体制框架的弱点和失败暴露给全球层面。本文主要关注对这一流行病的多边反应（联合国、非洲联盟 [AU] 和西非国家经济共同体 [ECOWAS]），主张在《联合国宪章》第八章的背景下加强全球-区域合作以在未来更有效地应对西非的健康危机。本文通过分析西非经共体制定并通过西非卫生组织实施的现有卫生治理战略，为正在进行的全球卫生治理改革辩论做出贡献。本文主要关注对这一流行病的多边反应（联合国、非洲联盟 [AU] 和西非国家经济共同体 [ECOWAS]），主张在《联合国宪章》第八章的背景下加强全球-区域合作以在未来更有效地应对西非的健康危机。本文通过分析西非经共体制定并通过西非卫生组织实施的现有卫生治理战略，为正在进行的全球卫生治理改革辩论做出贡献。本文主要关注对这一流行病的多边反应（联合国、非洲联盟 [AU] 和西非国家经济共同体 [ECOWAS]），主张在《联合国宪章》第八章的背景下加强全球-区域合作以在未来更有效地应对西非的健康危机。本文通过分析西非经共体制定并通过西非卫生组织实施的现有卫生治理战略，为正在进行的全球卫生治理改革辩论做出贡献。s 第八章，关于未来更有效地应对西非健康危机的内容。本文通过分析西非经共体制定并通过西非卫生组织实施的现有卫生治理战略，为正在进行的全球卫生治理改革辩论做出贡献。s 第八章，关于未来更有效地应对西非健康危机的内容。本文通过分析西非经共体制定并通过西非卫生组织实施的现有卫生治理战略，为正在进行的全球卫生治理改革辩论做出贡献。