“Liberia Can Resist Ebola”, Dr. Nyan -But Warns Politics over Expertise

MONROVIA – Amidst rising concerns over recent Ebola outbreaks in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, Liberians can breathe a sigh of relief from the submission of Dr. Chris Dougbeh Nyan, a Renowned scientist and former Director General of the National Public Health Institute of Liberia (NPHIL), who stated that the country’s health system is capable of resisting the epidemic provided politics is not given premium over science and expertise.

In a social media post which has been trending over the weekend, Dr. Nyan is reassuring the public that Liberia’s public health infrastructure is robust, highly capable, and fully prepared to handle any potential threats, provided technical experts are left to do their jobs without political interference.

The reassurance from Dr. Nyan is gaining traction given his pedigree as is a world-class infectious disease expert, scientist, and inventor. He is globally recognized for inventing the Nyan Test, a rapid multiplex diagnostic test that can detect and distinguish multiple infections (including Ebola, Malaria, and Zika) in less than an hour.

As a former Director General of NPHIL, Dr. Nyan led Liberia’s frontline defense against disease outbreaks with a fierce commitment to ethics, scientific integrity, and transparency. Under his leadership, NPHIL worked tirelessly alongside international partners like the US-CDC and Africa-CDC to strengthen the nation’s pandemic resilience, transitioning lessons learned from the 2014 Ebola crisis into a modern, responsive public health system.

He emphasized that Liberia boasts some of the finest public health minds on the African continent. This expertise has been continuously sharpened through successful responses to COVID-19 and Mpox.

A testament to the strength and ethics of Liberia’s scientific community occurred as recently as September 2025. Dr. Nyan revealed that when external bureaucratic pressures almost triggered a false alarm regarding a Viral Hemorrhagic Fever (VHF) outbreak, the technical team at NPHIL stood their ground. Backed by flawless, uncontestable negative laboratory results from the National Reference Laboratory, the leadership resisted the pressure, saving Liberia’s economy and daily life from a catastrophic and unnecessary shutdown.

“Our leadership and Team at the NPHIL remained ethical and professional… Hence, the country remained viable and functional,” Dr. Nyan stated, praising the patriotism and morals that guide Liberia’s scientific community.

While Liberia is geographically distant from the current outbreaks in East and Central Africa, Dr. Nyan noted that trans-country travel means the country must remain alert, but entirely calm.

He said the mechanisms to keep Liberia safe are already active as the country regularly monitors and tests for Ebola, Marburg, and other highly pathogenic viruses. However, he asserted that to  maintain this safety net, there is a need to provide a proactive path forward including but not limited to supporting and incentivizing the port health systems that monitor incoming and outgoing passengers, ensuring laboratory testing remains credible, reliable, and free from conflicting data and allowing skilled scientific experts to lead outbreak responses independently, free from parallel structures or bureaucratic power plays.

Dr. Nyan reminded citizens that everyday habits are Liberia’s best defense. He urged the public to continue the excellent hand-washing and sanitizing regulations originally put in place during the Mpox response.

Furthermore, because early Ebola symptoms can mirror malaria (fever, headache, nausea), he advises anyone experiencing these symptoms to visit a health facility immediately and to rely strictly on certified scientific experts for information to avoid the spread of rumors.

With an effective vaccine now existing globally for Ebola, and regional bodies like the West African Health Organization (WAHO) and the Africa-CDC actively monitoring the situation, Liberia stands in a position of strength, transparency, and readiness.

Some medical experts and pundits are of the opinion that the foundations laid by experts like Dr. Nyan and the unwaveringdedication of NPHIL’s scientists, Liberia is well-guarded, well-prepared, and safe.